Love Comes in Darkness
by Katidid92
Summary: The sequel to Separation Anxiety. After JoD, during a battle, NiGHTS and Reala are forced to escape a dark cave and uncover hidden feelings along the way by the mysterious Nightmaren child from three years earlier. An angry Jackle sets out to search for Reala after Wizeman leaves him for dead. The god is up to something and the Maren child will reveal why she came from the future.
1. The Rockslide

Edit: 08/18/12 I've done major editing in this chapter and will most likely do more in the future.

1 The Rockslide

Wizeman the Wicked's eyes all shot open at one time. The all-powerful god looked around to find that he was in his throne room. He could make out a space of dark clouds with no floor.

He looked through his mind at the world around him. By the suns position over Nightopia, he could tell he had been dead for six months this time.

He remembered what happened all too well.

NiGHTS the traitor had been behind it along with two Visitors, mere children at that. Will and Helen were the two's names.

Three years after the Dreamers Claris and Elliot left, the two twelve year-olds appeared at The Dream Gate.

The first was the blond-haired blue-eyed female. Helen immediately met his rebel creation in the entrance of dreams. The child found herself helping NiGHTS stop him from destroying Nightopia.

When she had come about half way through her first dream world, Will arrived to assist NiGHTS as well.

Soon enough, both children had gathered four of their Ideya each.

At that time, they ascended to the Dream Gate's hill where the final Ideya, Hope awaited them both.

Wizeman chose that time to attack and defeat the three once and for all. He captured the purple jester ,but to his shock her friends took a leap into The Dark Ocean in pursuit. They freed NiGHTS and defeated his servant Reala than Wizeman himself.

When he thought of the red jester, his loyal servant, he knew he had to summon him. Wizeman would punish him later but first he needed to discuss with him on their plans. Sure enough, the red clad jester came and kneeled before him.

For six years, the god had sensed doubt begin to appear in the Nightmaren.

Trouble would occur if both of his first level Nightmaren were to turn on him. Wizeman decided that if Reala become a rebel, he would destroy him at all costs. He was certain that it was a fifty/fifty chance.

"Welcome back to the living, Master Wizeman," Reala said. There was no way he could become a threat. Reala had to have known where his loyalties were.

There was only one thing that could possibly cause the crimson maren to turn on him. While she had still been in his services, NiGHTS the rebel, was his closest friend and partner.

If she still wanted that fact to remain true, perhaps he did as well.

Wizeman could never allow the two to be together.

The top Nightmaren may have continued to struggle with the feelings they had supposedly thrown away long ago. The truth lay in a place their master could never find through looking at them.

He had created them with different properties than the other Nightmaren. The lower leveled ones had to obey his commands because their minds weren't strong enough to fight his influence.

The only one that possibly could was Jackle but he was so unstably minded it probably never would have mattered.

When it came to the first level Nightmaren, the only two known in existence, free will had been granted to them. This was the power that could make his creations fight his loyalties.

"Thank you, Reala. Are the two humans still in Nightopia or has NiGHTS joined forces with others?" Claris and Elliot remained in Nightopia until they reached adulthood to help overthrow the lord of nightmares. Will and Helen had been younger than the first at the start of their fight. It was very likely they could be in Nightopia until they grew up themselves.

Only those with youth could see Nightopia for what it truly was. Most human's dreams were normal and they could not control them or wander anywhere in it. Special visitors could reach places and command it just like those children. If the young ones were still there, most likely the war between the light and dark halves of The Night Dimension could be as tough as a mountain.

"Neither, my master. Visitors seem to be scarce not one has showed up who has an Ideya of Courage. In addition, the traitor has not had the want help them. Every evening, she has been sitting on the clock tower of the previous two's land." It was rare that NiGHTS went to The Waking World. As a resident of The Night Dimension, she required dream energy to live as a human required air. Coming into the Visitor's world was toxic if she stayed too long.

If she went there every night, Wizeman could never return her to his services because soon enough she'd be dead.

He didn't want to create another first level Nightmaren. If another were to be born, a bigger threat could appear. It was dangerous to create another one only for it to become a stronger rebel than NiGHTS herself. It was too big a risk.

"Very well, Reala. Your next mission is to hunt the traitor and bring her to me." This was the perfect opportunity to return the purple Maren to Nightmare Castle. With no Visitors and the possible weakening from the real world, it was likely to be an easy capture.

It would also be a good chance to test Reala's loyalty. If he couldn't catch his former friend, it meant his allegiance to his master was gone. Wizeman was ready to find out if a rebel was ready emerge in him too.

"My master, if I may, isn't that a bit risky?" Perhaps he really couldn't bring himself to catch NiGHTS. There was still a chance he could prove his worth after being defeated two times. The god had to convince him to go for his test to work. Reala _would _do as instructed. If he didn't succeed it, meant his death would be in mere seconds.

"Worry not, Reala. Nightmaren only have the ability to play their musical instruments in The Waking World. She is defenseless without her skills, as I made her body frail; while you possess brawn. It will be an easy matter for you," he assured his right hand. "Do as I have said if you wish to keep your life." Adding a threat would just make things easier.

"Yes, my master. I will go at once." When the signal came, he flew out of Nightmare Castle. He flew until he reached a warp tunnel and went through it.

…

NiGHTS played a sad song on her invisible flute as she sat atop the Clock tower. As the great poet once said, "music reflects your feelings" but why was she sad? Yet two more friends she had lost to the Waking World.

Every time she befriended a visitor, they woke up. This time they had not forgotten her but it was not right for her to see them again. She knew trying to contact them was wrong. This was as close to them as she could get.

Thus, she had been trying to let them go but it was hard. She did not even have Owl to talk to anymore because he had disappeared after she had returned to The Dream Gate.

He would rabble on about things she ignored and fly away like a coward at every chance. So much for a friend.

She would just have to deal with the loneliness until her suicide came from The Waking World. Yes, she was thinking of death. She'd given up hope that Wizeman could be destroyed. She'd rather be dead than being forced to serve him so this was how she chose to do it.

At least she could watch the Visitor's she'd befriended enjoy each others company. She could tell from watching Will and Helen they would live happy lives together. Watching them smile almost made her death worth it.

"NiGHTS, are you ready to come back to, Nightmare with me?" She looked up from her song. No one other than Reala stood before her.

She knew she could not use her powers in The Waking World. She chose suicide for her death not returning to Nightmare. She knew he was going to attempt to grab her.

Then an idea came to her that would upset him but she could easily make an escape until she had to fight.

The red jester approached her as she blew an endless high c into her flute. It was the most horrible noise he had ever heard. He put his hands on his head, trying to drown out the noise but it did no good. He thought his head was going to explode.

"NiGHTS, stop that!" he shouted.

"See you later, Reala!" He looked up. NiGHTS had been flying and playing at the same time. She was already halfway across the city. He could already feel a bit weak from leaving The Night Dimension. Now he would be stuck here until he caught her. He knew that time Wizeman wouldn't let him return empty handed.

"Come back here, traitor! You know I will catch you eventually!" he said giving chase. He slowly caught up with her as she tried to escape. Soon enough, the sky scrapers ended and they reached the suburbs of Bellbridge.

Just where did she think she could go? Something was up her sleeve and Reala knew it very well. She flew out of the area and across the city's bay. She flew under the bridge that gave the town its name.

"There is no way you can even fly faster than me! Wizeman created us with equal strength!" NiGHTS yelled as she flew into a portal. Reala followed her into it just before it closed. The chase continued through the warp-zone until they reached the exit of another portal.

_'Master Wizeman said this would be easy. My master, you think too much of me!' _he thought.

Nightopia came into view when he exited the tunnel. They had come out in the most lethal area in Lost Park there was.

NiGHTS flew through a narrow gorge and Reala continued to chase her. She looked back at one point.

He swore he saw sorrow in her eyes. _'Was she actually__** intending **__to kill herself by going to the human world?'_

As long as he'd known her, she seemed focused on keeping herself alive. Why would his rival want to kill herself!? Had she given up on trying to defeat Wizeman? That was most definitely not the NiGHTS that had formerly been his closest friend.

She was usually a cheerful, lover of comical jokes, who lived for fun and their master's death of did this bother him?

_'We're supposed to be enemies! I should be glad if she were dead!' _Once again, his mental torment began. He always got a headache when it happened. In secret, for three years now, a decision had been fought over by his conscious and his loyalty to Wizeman. The battle in his head happened because of NiGHTS herself.

At that time it first happened, she had disguised herself as a Nightmaren named Lunamystica and sneaked into Nightmare Castle. When Reala discovered her true identity, he learned she had returned because she had missed him.

This had made him wonder so many things. The one in particular was if he still cared for the purple jester or if he truly hated her. The next was if he did still want her friendship, would that mean he should betray Wizeman? All of his thoughts argued with one another to the point he thought he would self-destruct.

Finally, he managed to shake the visions away and continued his focus on capturing NiGHTS.

_'I cannot get out of this. I will have to fight now.' _She finally stopped and got into a stance. She and Reala began to aim punches and kicks throughout the air. They could both feel their strength returning now that they were back in their own world.

The red jester wasn't going to create a Mare Balloon arena this time because he knew NiGHTS could easily win with her wits. This would be hand to hand combat battle in the sky.

The female kicked him on the leg and he punched her shoulder. He used that chance to try to grab her arm and throw her to the ground but she moved out of the way too quickly. She aimed at his leg again but he side-stepped in air to her left. This time he grabbed her arm successfully and hurled her into a rock wall. She cried out as she smashed into it but quickly (even though she was wounded now) came at him again. Reala dodged her blows easily. His last attack had slowed her down again.

Then she got an idea that could easily trick him. She looked up at nothing behind him with a fake face of fear. "It... it's Wizeman!" she yelled. Reala turned around ready to hear his master's commands but he wasn't anywhere in sight. NiGHTS quickly hurled him into another rock.

"It seems this has become a fight to the death," Reala panted flying back into the fray. The fight raged on for quite some time. Neither side seemed to give in or became weaker than the other. It was true that they were equal in power and speed. No one could win and no one could lose.

The two were alike in so many ways. Somehow, one of the two of them had to find a way to defeat the other.

He needed to return her to his master so Nightopia could be destroyed. She needed to escape so she could end her life in peace.

Somehow, no matter how much they ignored it, neither wanted to fight the other.

A strange feeling stirred in both of them. NiGHTS's heart was pounding like crazy and Reala couldn't think clearly. Were they feeling like this because they were worn out from their sparring? No. Something different was happening to them.

They found themselves in-between blows looking into each other's eyes. Sadness could be made out by seeing the other in such a way. They paused trying to fight off this unusual emotion. The two Nightmaren succeeded but it still was in the back of their thoughts. The feeling was very vague but somehow the emotion was something familiar. They couldn't remember why it was so important to them. What was happening to the jesters!?

"If I go down, your going down with me," NiGHTS said. They had never had a battle this fierce with one another before.

They weren't fighting for the reason they had started with. Now the struggle they faced was for another reason. They were fighting for their beliefs in one another.

The rebel didn't understand what she believed in Reala for. Something told her he wasn't the enemy she knew for so many years. The other Nightmaren weren't like him in any way. There was something different about him. She just couldn't put her gloved finger on it.

He was fighting her for a similar reason. The rivals were trying to make their fellow combatant see from their own point of view.

"In your dreams you could kill me, NiGHTS. You're too afraid to do that!" Reala punched NiGHTS on the mouth and her lip began to bleed. Ignoring it, she punched him right in the middle of his face and this actually hurts ten times as much when you do not have a nose.

Reala angrily yelled, "Your nonsense ends here, traitor!" He struck a harsh blow to her shoulder and she grabbed it tightly in her fist. The purple jester was close to being defeated. He himself was in just as bad a condition. The winner would be decided within minutes maybe even seconds.

"Oh really I thought I was being… Eww blood in my mouth." Reala decided to take the opportunity of her disgust of her own blood to attack. He charged forward.

NiGHTS braced for the attack, when a loud rumbling noise filled the air. Confusion filled both their faces.

Reala stopped his attack to find the source of the sounds. There was nothing to his left in the gorge. He didn't see anything on the right, behind, or below him. There was only one other direction to search. He stared upward realizing the noise had come from above.

He instantly saw boulders and rocks tumbling into the gorge. "It's a rockslide!" his enemy cried. She didn't have any teleportation powers like he did.

In her condition. there was no way she could escape. She wouldn't even survive if luck was on his side.

"Well, NiGHTS, it looks like this little natural disaster may end you on its own. So, see you later, or will I?" Reala smirked and flew away a few inches.

He was about to draw a portal and make his escape but somehow he couldn't. His body couldn't move at all.

He sensed an unusual but familiar presence.

The last time he'd felt it was three years ago. The vision he'd had at that time flashed through his mind as did a small face. The mysterious figure's aura was just like this. That strange being was holding him back with her power.

_'The time has come for you to see the light. You must rejoin with your old friend. Your life as well as theirs depends on you being together!'_ the young voice rang out. He never thought that high soprano would come again. Even though he didn't know where she was, how could she keep him here in this mess?

"I can't move!" he growled in frustration. He glanced at NiGHTS and something told him she was frozen as well.

Looking up using only their eyes, they saw a boulder far more enormous than the others tumble down above their heads.

Everything went black as the disaster struck.

The last thing they remembered was they were somehow being pulled in a downward direction.


	2. The Truce

Edit 08/18/12: I've done major editing to this chapter and will probably do more in the future.

2 The Truce

NiGHTS body ached everywhere as she opened her eyes. She had made it through the rock slide. Now where was she?

When her vision returned to her, she looked around and noticed she was in an underground cave. It was dark but she could see that there was no way out from above. She noticed that over one end of the cave was a mess of boulders sealing her in. They were most definitely from the rock slide before. On the other end of the cave, were a large amount of tunnels.

That labyrinth just might lead her outside.

She still wondered what had frozen herself and Reala preventing them from flying away? Something pulled them downward too. She wasn't crushed by the boulder but how did she get buried there?

She slowly sat herself up and used some of her power to heal her most important injuries. She still had a few cuts and bruises but those could wait.

Her shoulder was sore. Reala had hit it pretty hard. She used a bit more power and the pain stopped.

She needed to think this through more.

Wait! did Reala get killed in the rock slide? Even though they were enemies, she shuddered at that thought.

At one time, he had been her closest friend. Now their relationship was disaggregated into nothing.

She took her mind off the thought unable to bear it anymore.

It must have been a bad rock slide to trap her somewhere like this. She shook. She never wanted to face the near death by a boulder ever again.

"Boy am I glad that's over with. Lucky me. I could have died during that disaster." She still wanted to die happily though.

It was still crazy to think that she wanted to die because she'd given up on Wizeman's defeat.

The hero didn't have the strength or will to beat her former master. Wizeman would win and she was certain of that fact. The thought of death still seemed better than working for him.

"It seems you weren't the only lucky one, NiGHTS." The purple jester whirled around, a few feet away was none other than Reala. His tights were rolled up and his boot was next to him. A **very** large gash oozing blood was on his left leg as well as other places all over.

He had survived too but he was hurt badly. It must have been a mix of their battle and the rock slide.

She almost felt sorry for the red jester. Actually, she did feel sorry for him. It was quite strange since they were rivals and enemies.

What was that feeling burning in her heart? She'd felt it before somewhere long ago. Perhaps the feeling came from the time before she rebelled against Wizeman. She didn't know how to describe it perfectly. It in a way felt like she would melt. What was this feeling!?

"It seems you are alive too what a pity?" she said shrugging. She may as well put on her humorous personality until she could think of a plan on how to get through the tunnels. Then again, if there was one thing Reala hated it was her over cheerfulness. He frowned whenever she smiled.

Even though she looked happy most of the time, deep down she was very depressed. Every time she made a friend, she was alone all over again. There was no one to permanently help her find a way to defeat Wizeman. The loneliness she felt inside the heart Wizeman never meant to give her was unbearable.

"Would you shut up for once you're so annoying!" Reala snapped. Clearly he wasn't in a good mood either. When he got mad _he got mad. _This was a very rare thing. Most of the time, he was leveled headed and relaxed. Seeing him like this was rather shocking and scary.

NiGHTS couldn't blame him for being in a bad mood. If she was working for Wizeman, putting up with his abuse, then got stuck there, and in such bad condition, she wouldn't be too friendly herself. She felt sorry for the other Nightmaren again. NiGHTS felt he didn't deserve this even after all the horrible things he'd done. They were just orders from Wizeman that he carried out. Maybe there were things he'd wished he hadn't done.

Even though she felt badly for him, she couldn't let him put her down though. "At least I'm not filled with anger and hatred!" she retorted.

The female Nightmaren knew he wasn't filled with negativity but he certainly acted like it. Somewhere in that thick skull of his the Reala she had once known had to still exist. If only he could be her friend whom cared for her once again.

She cared for him too though she didn't admit it. Her feelings for him were deep. She didn't know exactly how much she was fond of him but it was certainly quite a lot.

There was probably no way to bring him back to his old self no matter how much she wished it. Even so this might be her chance to try.

He was too badly injured to get out of here alone. If he could still fly there was no way he could create a portal by flying in a circle. He wouldn't be fast enough.

"I wouldn't be if you hadn't caused Master Wizeman to leave a permanent punishment on my face!" He was referring to the black scars across both his eyes. Even the Persona he still wore couldn't hide those dark marks.

Nightmaren scars were black because the color of their blood was much darker than a human's.

Most people who saw these across his face assumed they were marks like a mime had but they were actually the result of an injury that could never be repaired. The reason he received them from Wizeman was something that happened long ago.

When NiGHTS rebelled, because she had been Reala's partner he was punished in her stead. The penalty was Wizeman to shoot lightning at his servant's eyes. The marks left behind were the blackened scars that had brought much pain with them.

"You haven't gotten over those scars yet!?" NiGHTS exclaimed. That was over one hundred years earlier and he hadn't learned to deal with it yet? She couldn't believe it!

Why couldn't he just forgive her?

Because... he worked for Wizeman and she didn't. The god wasn't in her trust and was in his thus, Reala's belief in her didn't exist anymore.

Sometimes she did regret letting that happen to him. Sometimes she wished she had been punished and not him.

It could never happen because of fate.

She'd heard her old friend Claris recite a quote in a book which held the title, "xxxHolic" that stated, "There is no coincidence in this world there is only the inevitable." In another book the girl had read by the same author, "Cardcaptor Sakura" a similar group of words existed. "Nothing is accidental, everything is fated."

Just like those phrases, everything that had happened to them could never be changed. Everything happened for a reason based on the decisions you made. Each one held a new direction in life that led to another choice that the universe decided for you.

"Not just the scars! Do you know how badly the other pain I felt was!?" She had a good idea of how bad the pain could be. NiGHTS was amazed he hadn't gone blind due to that incident. The shock of that could have been so great he could have even died.

She was certain that it was also destiny that he survived that. Reala lived in the line of fate forever following the path that forced him to try to return her to Nightmare. The other's road constantly intertwined with his leading to eternal battles over freedom and loyalty.

If only the course of time could be changed and happiness could come for both of them.

Wait... time?

She remembered a strange presence from three years ago. It was exactly the same as what kept them still and pulled them downwards earlier.

"Jeez! Can't you just re-work to your old personality!?" NiGHTS half asked half demanded. Why couldn't the old Reala still be at her side? Why couldn't the Reala that was here now be on her side?

If only she hadn't ripped his heart out causing his hate to develop. How long had she wished she hadn't hurt him?

Her own heart ached with sorrow because his ached with sorrow. They fought over and over they held the same pain inside their souls.

Why would feeling the of hurt of someone else make you hurt? How come her pain was Reala's and no one else? Why is it she hurt for him and only him? Why were her emotions like this around the red maren unlike anyone else?

She felt so many feelings twirl and twist inside. What was this sensation? She'd felt like this long ago as if it were in a dream or maybe a dream within a dream.

"At least I'm not the one who cried the first time you said that." She had cried back then. At that long ago, time her feelings spilled out and overwhelmed her. She hated thinking about the break down she had those three years ago. The long night she tried to seduce Reala fell apart when her disguise disappeared.

The male Nightmaren grew furious with her unlike anything she'd ever seen. She felt so terrible about what she'd done and how badly she'd longed to be with him once again she cried until she no longer could.

Then Claris and Elliot had sacrificed themselves to save her. The teens managed to return to The Waking World by some strange force, but NiGHTS had never seen them again.

It all happened and her tears flowed to the end.

Reala tried to move his leg and winced. Perhaps he was trying to fly away. He was too badly hurt to move.

"Are you alright!?" she suddenly found herself asking. She was concerned about her enemy? What was wrong with her? Her thoughts grew fuzzy and her heart race increased. _'Why do I care about him so much? He is out to either defeat or capture me. I should hate him like he hates me!_

_'No you shouldn't...'_

_'Yes I should...'_

_'Don't mask your true feelings. The one you feel right now can make anything happen...'_

She stopped thinking. That wasn't her own thoughts in her head she was fighting. That voice wasn't her own. Her voice was deeper and adult this one was high and childish. She knew that voice anywhere though she did not know who it belonged to.

_Believe in it, yourself, and Reala. Then you won't need to end your life like you think you shoulf if you listen to my words.'_

_'Who are you!?'_

_'That doesn't matter yet. Regain your trust and worry about me later.' _That presence was the same one again.

"DO I LOOK ALRIGHT TO YOU!?" Reala yelled. He couldn't hear the voice. It was in her thoughts. Someone was speaking directly into her mind!

She looked at Reala and decided she had no choice but to listen. "At this rate, you may actually hear the end of me, NiGHTS... unless you actually do commit suicide like you were trying to..."

Now that she looked at him more carefully, she realized he was hurt far worse than she thought! Why didn't she notice how seriously critical his injuries were when it was so obvious!?

She recalled Wizeman had given her the ability to heal herself but Reala didn't have that power!

If she didn't help him, he would die!

She looked more closely and noticed he was about to lose consciousness! Before she could do anything, he crashed to the ground!

"REALA! NO!" She picked him up gently in her arms. He'd lost so much blood that began to seep into her clothes. "Please wake up!" she cried.

It would take a lot of strength but she could heal him. She forced herself to magically close his wounds and began to breathe heavily. If she just used a little more power, then she could save his life. Hopefully, now all that blood couldn't leek out and his body would produce more.

She stared at his face. When he wasn't awake, the negativity appeared to have vanished.

His eyes were closed and barely visible behind his Persona. She couldn't stop herself from peeling it off his face.

She'd never noticed how large the scars were on his eyes because the gold mask. It was no longer a wonder he had been so furious at the injury he'd never recover from.

She placed it back atop his eyes and muttered. "I never meant to give you so much grief... I'll get us out of this cave somehow..."

"Dare I... ask... how...?" She nearly jumped which would have caused his head to hit the stone ground again. How could he have awoken so quickly?

Of course... Nightmaren recovered fast from injuries when their gashes had been closed.

She truly had saved his life! There was no doubt he would be nearly healed within a few days.

He wouldn't be able to make a paraloop until then so he'd be stuck there with her though.

Why did her heart pound at the thought of being alone with him?

Nothing could happen between them like _that._ Enemies were enemies through and through until the end. Nothing like that would and or could happen between the two Nightmaren.

"And why... are you bringing me...?"

"Neither of us will make it out of this cave on our own. I say we hold a temporary truce work to together until we find a way out of here," NiGHTS explained. Reala said nothing. Clearly he realized he had no choice to go with her until he fully recovered.

He tried to get up but couldn't manage it and held back a cry of pain. "Don't move yet, Reala. For now, you need to rest until you're fit to travel."

He muttered under his breath seemingly because he was unhappy to be in this situation. "For now we should both get some sleep. We'll need all the energy we can to get out of here."

"I guess I have no other options... so I'll do as you say... Just remember that if I'm fully healed before this 'truce' is supposed to end, I'll take you to Master Wizeman..." Even though he was as weak as he was, he still had that determination.

If only he could use that strength for something good everything would be so different. "I just have one question... why did you help me?"

NiGHTS had hoped he wouldn't ask that question of all things. She blushed and tried to find a way to answer.

Reala was confused by how she acted as she tried to think. Either his head hadn't fully cleared up yet or she was a mystery as usual.

He wondered why he was growing puzzled. This wasn't like him in the slightest way.

"I honestly don't know why I saved you... I just did... I really don't see a reason why I shouldn't have..." she said quietly. "Perhaps I just wished you would... never mind..."

Reala knew what she had been about to say_. 'Perhaps I just wished you would forgive me..._'

A reply to that statement never popped into his head. Should he or shouldn't he answer those words? He didn't know what to say to her.

If he forgave her, he would simply return to Wizeman and they'd go back to being enemies. If he didn't forgive her, their battles would become fiercer.

He thought of how she had gone to The Waking World to escape the things she needed to live and end her life again. Since when had NiGHTS become suicidal before all this?

If they did fight worse than before, it wouldn't last long because she would kill herself.

Why didn't he want her to die?

"Can you put me down now so I can get some sleep?" She turned red again. Was she nervous about having him that close to her? Her antics were usually different than this by a lot.

The female maren sighed and set him down. She flew over and sat against a wall in the cave.

"You are not really you right now are you, NiGHTS?" She stared for a moment and looked away.

"I don't want to discuss it..." She closed her sapphire eyes and said: "Let's just get some sleep. Tomorrow you should be healed enough to get through the labyrinth."

Before he could respond, he realized she was already out cold. It wasn't surprising. All that power she used to heal herself as well as Reala must have been exhausting.

Why did it bother the red jester that her energy had been wasted on him?

He couldn't understand why he felt so strange. What was happening to him? He knew this feeling. Long ago, he'd felt it before... but where... and why...?

He slipped into sleep after the thought overtook him completely.

...

NiGHTS was in shock. A place she'd only seen a few times before was in front of her once again.

A thin pool of water filled with light was under where she floated. Above her there were bright colored clouds with sunshine raining down. A gold colored aurora with little sparkles circled the area. The mysterious but beautiful place seemed to stretch forever.

The familiar presence existed here at all times just as before.

She sensed the one she'd met only once outside those visions. The one that held a smile identical to hers in so many ways created this place.

There were so many things she didn't know about that little one. She held a lot secrets and an insight that was beyond imagination.

It had been three years since this last happened.

NiGHTS thought she would never be called out to by this being again. Just why did she summon the purple Nightmaren again now?

The last thing she said when they went their separate ways gave her a clue. _'I promise you that we will meet again when the time is right.'_ That time had come at long last.

What was so important that made them reunite on that night?

The other Maren was enigmatic in so many ways. She was definitely keeping big secrets for someone so small.

To her surprise, the child hadn't appeared yet.

"NiGHTS, I'm over here. I need to talk to you right now." Okay she was here after all. Soon enough, she was face to face with the young Nightmaren.

"Calling you by your name is still fun," she giggled. NiGHTS still didn't understand why she found it so amusing to call NiGHTS by name? What else could she be called buy?

It seemed she hadn't gotten older at all since they last saw each other. Then again, that could be because she claimed she was from the future. Ifshe time leapt there from where they last met directly to where they were now, she wouldn't have been any less young by a few hours or even minutes.

"Hi, NiGHTS," the yellow maren chimed. That voice definitely belonged to a Soprano seeing as how unbelievably high it was. Claris had also had that kind of vocal level. Could this Nightmaren child also have such a beautiful voice for songs? She doubted her voice was as good as Claris's though.

What was NiGHTS thinking? She need to squeeze answers out of this child before she took off her hat and ripped all her blond hair out.

"I would return the greeting but you never told me your name." It was true. The little Nightmaren hadn't told the older maren her name. "I'd like some appropriate responses to my questions this time okay?"

The little girl only giggled. "What is so funny!?" Couldn't she ever be serious? The kid only laughed harder. "Ugh! Just let me out of this dream! I don't want to deal with this or you!"

The young maren copied her smirk of amusement. "As you wish, NiGHTS."

Great... She'd said that out loud and now she wouldn't get to hear the words of wisdom she needed. She should have just held her tongue and been patient with the child.

She groggily awoke on the cave once more.


	3. What I Am Most Afraid Of

Edited on 09/17/12. I've done major editing on this chapter. Chapter 4 is next.

NiGHTS and all related trademarks © Sega and Sonic Team

The mysterious Nightmaren child is © Katidid92

3 "What I am Most Afraid of"

As they flew, NiGHTS noted Reala definitely was healing quickly. Within a day or so, he'd be at full strength again.

Sadly, if they weren't out of there before he could Paraloop away, she'd either be stuck there alone or be forcibly returned to Wizeman.

She didn't know what she could do if that were to happen.

The purple jester could try to escape, but even if she did, she couldn't flee forever or long enough that she could commit suicide.

NiGHTS just felt like she had no reason to live.

To her shock, Reala knew very well she was planning on killing herself at some point.

He would never again care whether she lived or died. In other words, even though he recognized what she was thinking, it didn't matter to him one way or another.

They weren't friends anymore. Why would it concern him?

He was the first friend she lost due to some sort on incident. The next two were Claris and Elliot and six months earlier. Finally, Helen and Will also faded away from her life.

This was the other reason she made plans for her own death.

She was alone in the world with no one at her side. What was the point of living a life without anyone to share it with? You could never be happy if you had no one to enjoy their time with you.

Reala and NiGHTS turned left in the tunnels of the cave.

They didn't know how long they'd been searching for an exit. At the least it would have been two hours and at the most it could have been five.

They headed right and through a path that slanted upwards. Logically, they thought that if they headed upwards in the tunnels, it would lead them above ground.

So far, there had been no sign of an exit anywhere.

What if there wasn't a way out of the tunnels?

If the red jester left her there, the female maren would be stuck forever.

_'He would never leave you here! He does care about you I promise!'_

Ugh! Would that child's voice ever vanish?

She hadn't told Reala that she'd heard the mysterious young Nightmaren calling her or that she dreamed of her. For one thing, he'd probably never believe her and for another, if he did he wouldn't care about it.

_'Regain your friendship. It is the thing that matters most to you isn't it?' You have a reason to live because he...'_

NiGHTS managed to build a wall in her mind and block out the messages the kid sent. All she needed to do was ignore her and that would make her go away.

The two jesters came upon a dead end in the cave. They didn't know which way to go in search of another path.

"Thank you, so much, NiGHTS. I love being lost," Reala said glaring. "It really was a good idea to go through the tunnels without making some sort of plan on how to find our way out," he sarcastically went on.

Why would that yellow maren tell NiGHTS she could regain his friendship? The way things were going, it was impossible to even think about a way to gain his trust.

She was certain Reala would always hate her after the ways she'd hurt him again and again. She didn't deserve Reala for the pain he'd been given by her.

Why was the child so certain they could be together again and who was she? The little girl had a very eerie resemblance the older maren. The way she acted was quite like how the other had behaved before now as well. It was almost like she was a clone of herself.

There was only one true difference between them. Her eyes were a shade or turquoise almost like Reala's. Her eye color were a darker pigment and his were pale due to the time Wizeman shot lighting at him though. Before that incident, the color would have been exactly the same.

"Well you said not to go through that other tunnel!" NiGHTS pointed out. She thought Reala would never forgive her and thus, she tried to convince herself that she didn't want to forgive him either. She forced her way into an argument just to lie to herself.

She knew what she wanted but she felt she could never receive it.

The strange child trying to contact her was attempting to prove her otherwise. Even so, what reason did the purple maren have to believe her? The yellow jester had no proof she and the crimson maren could be friends again.

Somehow, she still wanted to believe her but she couldn't manage to find a way. She looked into her heart but all she found was emptiness.

"Well we could have crashed into something or a beast could have been in there that would rip us to bloody shreds!" Something wasn't right with this picture. Since when had Reala believed such things could happen?

Staring into his eyes NiGHTS swore she saw fear. What was he afraid of all of a sudden? She'd never seen him act so strangely.

What was wrong with the male Nightmaren? W

hat could showing concern for him do? Nothing would happen if she tried to help him. He'd simply turn her away because he didn't want her help if she tried to succeed in helping him.

To Reala, she was probably nothing more than a traitor and an enemy.

"This is Nightopia and thus, there are no monsters! The closest thing possible to fictional things like that are the other Nightmaren!" NiGHTS snapped. After all the times Reala had come to this half of The Night Dimension, shouldn't he have realized that it was meant to be a happy paradise created by a human heart?

Nightopia was created from Courage, Purity, Intelligence, Growth, and Hope. These five lights drove away any evil and so, there was nothing demonic anywhere in the area.

The Nightmaren who attacked it were the only thing close to monsters because they sought to destroy the beautiful land.

Why didn't he realize that fact?

Then a peculiar thought popped into her head. "Wait a minute, Reala… Are you afraid of the dark?" NiGHTS asked. As far back as she could remember, Reala disliked going in places he wasn't able to see. Why would he be afraid of something you'd expect only a four year-old human to be?

"No, and I'm not afraid of anything!" Reala snarled. She read his expression and figured out he was bluffing. He really was afraid of the dark after all!

If you lied about your fear, it only made you more afraid.

NiGHTS couldn't believe he had such insecurity about the dark. What happened that made him frightened of blackened places like that? It never crossed her mind that he feared such a thing.

She wanted to go further into the topic. Something just told her this might be something she needed to know about. And so, she had to convince him to tell her about his fear, why it bothered him, and how it originated.

_'No matter how hard you try, you can't lock me out of your thoughts forever. Please just trust in me. I'm know I can help you. If you give in, something terrible will happen to the one you love. It doesn't have to be that way so let me help you!'_

Of course the young Nightmaren could break through her mental shield! She just wouldn't give up and it seemed she was the one responsible for making NiGHTS want to dwell into Reala's fear. W

hy couldn't she just go away and mind her own business? Even if she said a catastrophe would happen, it didn't have anything to do with her. Why was she trying to seep into the problem that could never be solved?

_'Just do it! Even if you don't believe me, you need to see you can reach him and you can regain your happiness!' _

NiGHTS gave up. There was no use reasoning with the mysterious young maren. It seemed her will had won and the purple jester's had lost. She would try to get a hold of Reala even if it only ended in more pain for both of them.

"Come on Reala, there has to be something you're afraid of. Everyone is afraid of something…" She pointed out. Even Wizeman himself had to have a fear of some kind. If an all-powerful god had a horror in his mind Reala must have one too.

_'This is the stupidest thing I've done since I tried to disguise myself a few years ago! By the way, that was your fault too!'_

NiGHTS swore she heard a mental snarl from the voice in her head. She wasn't always an overly happy ball of sunshine after all. She could get mad just like everyone else.

_'What does this even have to with you!? This is __**my **__and problem not yours!'/i _

NiGHTS realized she'd over done it. In her mind, she heard the kid crying.

_'It is important to me! It is my problem too! I don't want you to suffer because you're so important to me! I can't explain but I have a reason I want and __**need**__ to help you!'_

Great... now NiGHTS felt guilty. Her cries were so heartbreaking. She swore she could feel the child's pain as if it was her own. It was almost as if she knew the little maren so well she couldn't help but feel sorry for her.

_'I came here alone! I'm scared! I've gone through so much to try to help you! Why can't you understand what your own heart is trying to tell you!? Please help yourself out of the darkness you're in for my sake! I fear that if you don't do it, something terrible will become of me! Please help me by saving yourself from eternal loneliness!'_

She was more desperate about this than NiGHTS was about ending her own life! She knew the tiny maren wasn't a liar.

She was terrified for NiGHTS and what seemed to be her own life. Just what had she gone through that had been so terrible that she needed to call out for help so badly?

_'My fear is worse than his. You can help him overcome it even if you can't help me overcome mine! I trust you enough to help me, so trust me enough to help you..._' she paused. _'Please...'_

The older maren just couldn't let her suffer like that. If she didn't assist her, she felt as if her own heart would shatter into a million pieces.

She was like her friend Helen when she first came to Nightopia. Her eyes were so lost, afraid, and full of fright it would make you want to cry. She just couldn't leave her when she was so horrified it was terrible.

Even though NiGHTS currently couldn't see her face, she pictured it in her mind perfectly. She would try to help her even if it made her hurt even more... forever... 

"I'm different. I fear nothing and I mean nothing!" Reala was so enraged he didn't even notice the broken look on her own faces. He had no idea of the distress she felt so severely right now. She wanted to bring a smile to both his and the little girl's face.

Somehow, she felt very deep feelings for both of them that were equal in value.

In a way, even though she fully couldn't she understand why she cared for Reala, she still knew she cared about him very much. She'd never known the young maren before other than possibly a few hours adding up the few times she'd seen her. And yet, for some reason she couldn't help feeling tormented and saddened for her.

"Alright. If I tell you what I'm afraid of, will you tell me what you are afraid of?" she tried to convince him. A sense of relief entered her thoughts now that she was serious about this.

The presence of the one "invading" her thoughts seemed to be calming down quite a bit too.

When she'd been upset, it made NiGHTS feel as if it were the pain of two people she felt and not one. Perhaps the reason for that was because their minds, she guessed so anyway, were mentally linked. It was as if they were Dualized. When that process occurred, you could feel each other's thoughts and feelings like they were your very own.

"No I'm not afraid of anything!" Reala yelled. He refused to give in. Why would he open up to someone who had given him so much grief?

He was amazed NiGHTS even cared about his fear. Not only had she hurt him, he'd hurt her as well.

_'If she can forgive me why can't I forgive her?'_ He mentally began another battle with himself. _'She is a traitor and doesn't deserve forgiveness!'_

Why couldn't he make up his mind!? What caused him so much trouble finding the right decision about everything thing that involved himself and the only other first level Nightmaren in existence?

Wait, were they the only two? Another thought, or rather a memory, came to his attention.

Three years ago, he'd had a re-occurring vision. A mysterious Nightmaren child tried to make him choose this same decision he was torn with now.

Even though he'd never seen her outside of sleep, he knew she existed.

Her aura was too strong to be that of a second level Nightmaren. If she was real, could that mean there were more top level Nightmaren out there?

Wait a minute! Why was Reala getting side-tracked?

"I am afraid of lightning. I bet you didn't know I had that sort of fear did you?" NiGHTS continued. This was actually a true statement.

Lightning was what she was truly scared of?

You may be wondering in what way this scared her. It wasn't for the reason you may think it was.

This had to do with a tale of long ago that most have never known.

She and Reala were the exact center of the event as you will find out shortly.

"What…!? You have flown through more storm clouds than I ever have! You have flown straight through lighting laughing at it. Why would lightning scare you?" For once, Reala was speechless. This seemed very contradicting about his enemy's personality. He had never seen her cower over such a thing as long as he'd known her.

Could she be lying to make him admit his fear?

It was true. He noticed honesty in her eyes,

"Well, I'm not afraid of it hurting me. To be honest, I'm afraid of it hurting others I care about." What did NiGHTS meant by lightning hurting those she cared for? He had never heard of her being afraid of anything like this..

She certainly was quite a unique character, but this was beyond weak and beyond strange in itself.

Was there something he was missing that he should have noticed? No, and he didn't seem to be misinterpreting anything either

"Maybe we should stop for a rest. We can worry about being lost later," he said sitting down. He wanted to search for an answer though he didn't know why.

A break from flying would be nice anyway seeing as he wasn't fully recovered too.

Despite the fact it didn't matter to him, he told himself anyway, she must still not have much energy left from healing herself as well as him yesterday.

They were both exhausted. Fighting wouldn't do any good there. They may as well have some kind of conversion.

"Uh sure. Perhaps we should take a break" NiGHTS sat a few feet away from her rival.

Normally, his will would make Reala capable of traveling much further than this even when he was injured.

She was still glad she could relax a few minutes. For what reason did he pause when they needed to seek an exit?

She was certain they could get a lot farther without stopping.

"I was just wondering what do you mean by 'lighting hurting others? ' That is unusual, not that I really care?" He forced himself into saying that last part. He tried to fight the fact that he did want to know the reason.

That mysterious emotion had come over him again. Where and when did he first experience what he felt now?

He had suddenly sensed the presence that had dragged him down yesterday in the rockslide.

_'So it wasn't my imagination after all! Who are you?'_

He didn't expect a response but he received one. That high voice that belonged to such a small child spoke in his mind.

'_Do you remember that I told you my identity is classified information? Do you even remember me at all, Reala, because I certainly didn't forget you?'_

Every time he asked her a question, she would either say "classified information" or respond with an answer that made no sense.

It wasn't fair for her to confuse him.

He was thrilled beyond belief when he thought she had gone away three years earlier. He couldn't bring himself to be angry that she had come to meddle in his life again though.

'_I know kindness exists deep within your spirit. Draw out you care NiGHTS's sake. If you don't do as I say, you'll never be able to forgive yourself. She needs you now more than ever and I know for a fact you need her just as much.'_

He didn't understand what she was saying. There was no way that could be true!

_'Try to make better communication with her right now. What will happen if you do so,will change your future for the better.'_

Should he follow her instructions?

_'You need to listen to her. When you do that, she will listen to you too. Reala, you and NiGHTS can save each other if you heed my words.'_

He would try if it would make her leave him alone.

_'I believe in you. Have faith in her, who you are, and me too.' _

"I'll tell you if you tell me about what you're afraid of." NiGHTS responded. The mysterious Nightmaren child had said to "Listen" and thus he had no choice. He would tell her even if it hurt him more than the physical pain he still felt.

He hadn't come close to fully recovering and thus, he was stuck there with her following guidelines of a mysterious voice. He doubted she would go away until he completed everything she instructed him to do.

"I actually am very frightened of the dark. You were more right then you know..." he started quietly. The memory of how his fear began was the most horrible experience he'd ever had. The event was one of the few things that made him shudder. He didn't like thinking about it just because of how terrible it made him feel.

He hoped to death NiGHTS wouldn't ask him why he didn't like the dark.

"Why are you afraid of the dark?" Of course she had to know all the details of his reasons.

Why couldn't she just explain about her fear already?

He remembered again that he was told to "listen" to NiGHTS meaning he had to answer this too.

Was she trying to scar him for life mentally when he already was physically right across his face? He knew that wasn't true and the reason was important. He'd find out later if he didn't kill himself.

Wait... could that be why NiGHTS had become suicidal? In her soul did she have scars of her own that she couldn't bare anymore too?

Did that child actually mean when she said to listen he'd somehow heal NiGHTS emotional pain as well as his own? This new thought could explain why she said they would "save" each other.

Coming to an understanding by hearing the others feelings was going to create a miracle of some kind. That strange young maren was trying to help them after all!

He'd listen and after that he was certain the purple Nightmaren would answer for him to hear her out as well. If all this were true he could tell something would change.

"One just one… When I received my scars, I was temporarily blind..." His fear had to do with the punishment he received in her stead upon her rebellion. He received punishment a total of a hundred and six years ago.

Nightmaren didn't die unless they were killed, and thus they could possibly live forever. This meant Reala's life was so long he probably remembered the incident as if it were a year ago and not one hundred and six.

"What does that have to do with your fear?" NiGHTS questioned. She didn't understand this at all so far. He didn't expect her to get it seeing as she didn't understand why he was so angry about his scars themselves and not just how they happened to come across his eyes.

He was growing tense from this explanation very fast and didn't want to go into further details but he continued anyway.

"Master Wizeman shot lightning at my eyes which not only was more painful than any other injury I've ever had. It hurt even worse than the ones I have now after our fight and the rockslide... "

"It sounds more like you are afraid of lightning like me," NiGHTS stated. She still didn't get it but she was starting to figure it out.

She realized it was her fault he received the scars and from what she'd learned so far. Perhaps she was also to blame for his fear. She was the one who caused that pain even though it was Wizeman who punished Reala. All she did was rebel and yet that was enough for her former partner to be permanently injured.

"No I'm not afraid of lighting. After the lightning struck, I was blind. I could not see anything but blackness. I felt so much pain it was unbearable. All I remembered was the pain and darkness around me. Now when I go somewhere I can't see, I become frightened that I'll re-live it." It was her fault! It was entirely her fault! NiGHTS couldn't believe she was the one responsible at all! How could she have caused something so terrible to happen to Reala!?

"Reala... I'm sorry... I didn't know my rebellion would make Wizeman angry enough to hurt you.. and cause that fear! It... It was my fault..." This almost never happened but she began to cry. There was no way Reala could forgive her and there was no way she could forgive herself.

If only she hadn't rebelled on Wizeman, that would have never happened. She didn't care what would have happened if she had stayed in Nightmare.

Perhaps everything would have been destroyed but Reala wouldn't have been hurt. "I'm really... sorry..." The male Nightmaren said nothing and she continued to weep in guilt... "It was my fault..."

_'You have listened enough so, speak to her... Heal her sorrows... She truly needs forgiveness... She will commit suicide even faster if you don't tend to her heart... You know she must live... you can help her do that and then a miracle will happen.' _

That girl was right. Reala just couldn't let NiGHTS drown in her pain and guilt! He had to forgive her if he were to forgive himself for hurting her and making his own sorrow worse in the process...

_'Her fear intertwines with yours. Together you can face it and reach the light. With that accomplished, I promise you that things will get better. There will still be some darkness worse than the kind you fear ahead but if you both work hard, you can get through it.'_

She was trying to help them regain their friendship!

She said last the time they met he had a dark future ahead unless he rejoined with an old friend. The child had been talking about NiGHTS.

Did that mean he was meant to be with her as a friend to have a happy future? Or did it mean that they would become closer than even friends?

He wondered that if that were to happen, did it mean he would break his loyalty to Wizeman? That was his master and the one who created him. How could he possibly turn on the god!? He was sure he was still loyal to Wizeman, but he wanted to be loyal to NiGHTS too!

Which was right and which was wrong!? He couldn't worry about that now because at the moment he couldn't bear watching the purple jester shed tears anymore. He'd worry about this later.

"It's not your fault..." NiGHTS looked up. Her eyes were so sad but they were the most beautiful shade of blue there was. They were like a sparkling sapphire or a deep ocean. Her crying seemed to ruin how pretty they were. He had to ease her sadness and reveal her true self.

"But it is my fault! I rebelled and you were punished because of it!" At this rate, NiGHTS wouldn't use The Waking World to kill herself. She'd do it right then and right there!

Reala grabbed her and shook her."Didn't you hear me!? I said it wasn't your fault! Now get a grip on yourself! Even if it was your fault, what's done is done and there is no changing it!" NiGHTS stopped crying and stared with wide eyes.

"Reala..."

"We're getting out of this cave even if I have to drag you out of here trying to kill yourself!"

Chapter end.


	4. The Guiding One Shows Herself

Edited on 09/17/12

NiGHTS (C) Sega and Sonic Team

The Nightmaren child (C) Katidid92

4 The Guiding One Shows Herself

NiGHTS couldn't believe what she was hearing. Reala was forgiving her for the scars and trying to ease her guilt?

Just what had happened that made him like this all of a sudden? She didn't understand what was going on in his mind that would ever make him forgive her. Why would he suddenly have a change of heart like this?

Maybe it was a trick! What if he was taking advantage of her pain and faking sincerity so he could lure her to Wizeman? It wasn't true, but why was he trying to help her?

He didn't speak again and she didn't say anything back. She simply forced herself to stop crying. They sat in silence for about an hour unsure of what to say to the other.

The mysterious Nightmaren child who had spoken through both their thoughts without the other knowing wasn't around. Her presence had faded away yet again, but both NiGHTS and Reala knew she'd be back very soon.

Wherever she'd gone they didn't have the slightest clue.

She was obviously planning something that would involve them. It was an easy guess they'd have to do it whether they wanted to or not.

After a long silence, they continued to seek the exit to the underground cave. They weren't hitting dead ends anymore but they still didn't go through the dark tunnel because of Reala's fear.

As they flew, NiGHTS found a way to tell him about why she was afraid of lightning hurting others she cared about.

The reason was a great shock that he never expected. Just after her rebellion, when she'd heard about his eyes being hurt by Wizeman, she feared something like that could happen again to him or yet another friend she cared about.

Her fear had been for him the whole time! By learning about what the other Nightmaren was afraid of, they realized they wanted to hold onto to one another friendship.

Reala didn't say it out loud but both of them knew the problem. He was still trying to decide if he was loyal to Wizeman or if his true faithfulness belonged to NiGHTS. He'd have to make a decision before they got out of the cave or things could get ugly.

Another fact disturbed them both that they kept to themselves. The two didn't suspect they both knew about this one. As they searched the exit, the strange feeling they felt continued to swallow them.

It wasn't a bad emotion or a good one either clouding their thoughts. NiGHTS and Reala knew they'd felt it before. From what they understood, it had to do with what they thought of each other. Once again, they didn't make it through the cave before another day went by and thus they fell asleep once again in the cave.

…

Gold light filled a part of the cave nearby and a figure emerged from it. "I can't keep talking to them from a distance. Using magic from far off wastes the energy I need to have if something happens. I guess I'll have to talk to them while they sleep very near them. I hope they don't wake up and see me. That stranger told me… a time traveler must be careful not to be seen by those they interact with and they must not give the ones they meet their name. So I better do as they told me."

The strange maren reached where NiGHTS and Reala slept and carefully focused her powers. "I've made sure to hide my presence from both the past of that one and the one of my time. I can't do it much longer. Hopefully, I'll be alright." She sent dreams into the other Nightmaren's minds at that moment.

….

A thin pool of water was below Reala. Gold and blue aurora's filled the sky and light rained down from puffy orange clouds. Small circle shaped waves endlessly went in an outward direction in the water. "It can't be… I'm here again?" he questioned.

He'd felt her presence earlier and he'd heard her voice too so why did he now enter one of her dreams again?

"I'd be grateful if I were you, Reala. I helped you regain your friendship with NiGHTS. In addition, I'll continue you to help you so you can save your future too." The yellow Nightmaren said as she appeared before him. She certainly was an annoyance to him but somehow he couldn't bring himself to hate her. She was assisting him after all and she was just a little kid.

Bringing himself to hate a human child was one thing; bringing himself to hating a Nightmaren child was another.

Another reason he couldn't dislike the stranger was that face of hers. She looked exactly like NiGHTS. The resemblance was very eerie but with facial features so much like his friend it felt like he would hate the purple jester if he hated her.

"So, just what do you have planned for me now? By the way, I recall you mentioning you're from the future the last time I saw you. Would you be from this time period by chance?" Maybe she would answer him this time instead of talking in circles. If she didn't, he thought he'd go as crazy as Jackle.

"No, I'm still about fifteen years away from existing. As for what is 'planned' I can't tell you until you identify and express a certain emotion." So, she gave him one of each kind of answer.

It was better than nothing, but he was still irritated by her explanations.

Why did she have to keep everything a secret? She must have had some sort of reason for why she didn't respond properly. If he found out that wasn't why she didn't make anything clear, he'd be furious.

"Why won't you tell me the truth about why you speak with me like this? Why have you come from the future? Is there a special reason you have come here? What is your reason to help me?" He wanted a proper response even though he was certain he wouldn't get one. It didn't hurt to try and get what he wanted out of her though. Maybe just maybe she'd tell him her story.

Those eyes of hers looked as if she were lost or worried about something despite the fact she always seemed to hold a smile. He knew something must be wrong that she wouldn't admit to.

Who was this little girl in front of him right now? Why had she desperately come to help him? Would assisting him help her as well?

"Sorry, it's classified information." He was right after all. She put on an innocent face when she spoke those words just as she had every time before now. It was as if this was a story and that phrase was her running gag.

The young maren seemed to have a sense of humor quite like someone he knew all too well. This child reminded him so much of that other one. He couldn't put his finger on whom she made him recall. She was the same as them without a doubt.

"Why are you unable to hand out your info?" He already knew what she'd say amazingly. Her answer was easy to predict from the way she'd spoken before. He certainly didn't know the stranger well at all. Even though he didn't he had learned a bit about her personality. He also learned what to expect from her.

"Sorry, it's classified information." He was right on the mark after all. It was as if he did know the child which allowed him to predict her response.

In the little time since he'd met her, Reala had sensed a familiar feeling about the little girl. He knew her without a doubt. Why couldn't he identify the reason he recognized her? It was like Déjà vu to him... It was like he'd met her before even though he hadn't.

Before he could ask another hopeless question, a shocking thing happened. He looked around as the aurora above began to flicker and twist. The water pool's waves began to move like they would in a storm.

"What is going on!?" he shouted in confusion. The younger Maren didn't respond and began to clutch her head like it was splitting open. "Are you alright!?" All she did was let out a wail of pain that startled him even more. The aurora's color changed to a blood red and her screams grew more frightening.

"LEAVE ME ALONE! YOU'RE REALLY SCARY!" she cried out. "I'M SCARED STOP!" Reala realized it wasn't him she was shrieking at. Was someone else also invading his dream? "I'M SCARED!" What in the world was happening? Finally the Aurora faded and everything went black. His dream ended at that moment.

...

"Reala, wake up!" NiGHTS shouted. "Wake up right now!" His eyes shot open in a flash. He looked to see that her face was filled with alarm. What had happened that shocked her so much?

"I had the strangest dream..." he muttered. The purple jester's face became even more shocked. "Is something wrong?" She nodded. He should have known that instantly. What was she so worried about?

"So I wasn't the only one who had a dream like that," she paused. Did NiGHTS have the same vision flow through her head!? "I think I know who is behind this. Look over there!"

She pointed a few inches away. Collapsed on the ground was the mysterious yellow Nightmaren. She was barely breathing, her face was off, and she was trembling. Reala flew over and picked her up to find she was colder than ice.


	5. A New Companion

Edited on 09/17/12

NiGHTS © Sega and Sonic Team

The Nightmaren child © Katidid92

5 A New Companion

Reala held up the yellow Nightmaren whose eyes remained shut.

Her breathing was getting slower and she was growing more cold than ever. Whatever happened to her must have been horrible. Her trembling began to get worse and she became a sickly green color.

He glanced over at NiGHTS. She also wore a worried idiom on her face.

They didn't even know who she was and yet they feared for her all the same. Would she be alright? They knew that unless they did something she was doomed.

Reala said: "There is nothing we can do. At this rate, she will die."

He'd already given up, but NiGHTS had an idea. "Its as if she has been sucked dry of her life energy. If she has enough, we can save her."

Reala stared in confusion. What was she planning?

NiGHTS removed her white gloves revealing a Red Ideya shard on each. He remembered how those had embedded into her skin all too well.

Three years ago, when she had almost returned to serving Wizeman, her friends Elliot and Claris had managed to stick their Courage Ideya within her body which stopped her from serving the god.

Did her plan involve those shards in her hands? "Whenever I could be without a battle for some time, I would pour energy of mine into the shards. I always saved it in case of an emergency. It seems this might be one of them." She was going to try and pour her power into the child? It just might work!

"But don't you need that energy in case something happens to you?" Reala questioned. What if there came a situation where she needed energy to save her own life? If NiGHTS did this, she could wind up in big trouble.

Her idea was risky but she was willing to take it anyway. That was who she was. The purple jester was more than willing to sacrifice herself for others.

He didn't think he could be brave enough to put himself in danger for someone else' sake. She knew what true bravery was and he didn't. The strength of her heart was unbelievable. He envied her. She was something he swore he could never be. He admired this side of NiGHTS.

Wait how much did he like her? When that thought came to him, he felt strange. The feeling had appeared once again.

"She needs this far more than I do. I believe there is nothing. but pure good in the hearts of children. There is no child in existence that deserves to die." Her words were so deep. Her beliefs were so amazing. She was an astonishing being and he had never met another like her.

Reala watched as she began to pour energy into the little girl's body. As he stared, her body grew to a more normal temperature and a more natural color returned to her face. Her breathing began to ease and her trembling ceased. She was going to live after all!

He looked at NiGHTS again to find she looked a little tired. "In the end, I didn't have enough energy in the shards and had to use some of my own energy," she explained. She had risked her life again to save someone! How did she manage such a feat after healing him the other day?

She was different. She was special.

"She should wake up soon. However, until she does awaken, I don't think we can keep going." This time it was Reala's turn to take charge.

"I'll carry her on my shoulders so let's get going." NiGHTS stared. She was concerned he could get hurt again trying to lift her. He knew that is what she thought just by look on her face. "I'll be okay. I'm almost fully healed. You do want to get out of this cave don't you?" she nodded.

Even though she didn't say it, he figured out she wanted to tell him to be careful. "Don't worry about me."

Finally, they made an agreement and went forward. The longer he seemed to be around their unconscious companion the more familiar she felt. _'I know this little girl. I don't know how and I don't know where but I recognize her. Who is she?'_

Little did he know, NiGHTS felt the exact same way about the little girl. Was there some sort of important connection they had to her that they didn't know about?

...

Meanwhile, in Nightmare Castle, Wizeman was thinking very hard about something in particular.

He had sensed a strange presence when he looked through Reala's Persona at his battle with NiGHTS.

It wasn't as important but at that moment, he could feel his servant's tension while fighting his former friend.

The unknown aura the god had identified as the same one from three years earlier.

At that time, he'd only felt it for a split second and yet he could tell it was the same.

When he was about to destroy the purple jester, a strange gold aurora filled the nighttime sky. The bright light caused him pain and he had to flee. Whatever created the aurora was trying to protect the rebel.

Now at long last the one behind that defeat had reappeared. He was sure it was a Nightmaren though he wasn't behind its creation like all the others. If this maren was strong enough to injure him, they could be very useful to his plans.

Unfortunately, at that moment, Wizeman had no idea where it was. He also guessed that it had caused him to lose where Reala's presence was. That mysterious being had hidden his right hand.

"My servant you are as good as dead," The Lord of Nightmare's said allowed.

"Who is as good as dead?" A high pitched voice rang out from behind a door. Soon enough the voice was followed by a psychotic laugh.

The god opened the door to reveal a quite unusual Nightmaren. He wore a jester hat on which the points curled up and forward, a cape, gloves, and boots. Two cat-like eyes and a mouth of sharp teeth were the only visible part of his body.

This maren was named Jackle. He was the captain of the Second-Level Nightmaren and Reala's younger brother. He was a very eccentric if not crazy Nightmaren. Though he seemed to be full of insanity, he had a very sharp mind and held a lot of secrets. Perhaps he held more confidential thoughts than most realized.

"You may enter, Jackle." Wizeman boomed. The god believed this maren was a failure of a creation. He created far too much trouble and was another that always lost to NiGHTS in battle. He may have even still considered the rebel a friend and not a traitor!

One thing was certain about Jackle in particular to the lord of nightmares. Someone must keep an eye on the caped maren at all times in case he was up to something. Like Reala, it was likely his brother would betray him. If he rebelled, there would be even more of a chance for than captain to turn against him.

"Very well, Master Wizey," Jackle laughed again. He was a comical jokester who seemed to have no desire to destroy Nightopia. He was far too fun loving for his own good.

The other Nightmaren often grew angry for the pranks he would pull that were complete nonsense. It was amazing that he hadn't been killed by the others by now.

No one suspected that a genius existed inside him that knew how to stay alive.

"What was that, Jackle!?" Wizeman boomed in anger. He defied his master enough to call him names. Where had he gone wrong creating this maniac?

Jackle was an annoyance that couldn't be exterminated. The god wouldn't destroy him no matter what because someday he might have actually had use for a change. This was unlikely but he still was convenient. There would be use for the psycho at one point.

"Nothing, Master Wizeman," he responded. As always he was capable of lying about his jokes.

Could anything startle him or was his insanity beyond fear? His boldness may have been why Wizeman kept him alive. He was a strong and capable fighter who lacked fear. That determination and stubbornness would either help Wizeman or the enemy depending on how he chose to live his life.

"My master, I came to ask you about Reala. He has been missing for a couple days now. What has become of him if I may ask?" Jackle said. He did his best to make it look like he was bowing even though he lacked a visible body.

"I sent him to capture NiGHTS. However, I'm not sure what exactly happened but some sort of accident has made me unable to track him down." The god knew far more than he told his servant.

Little did Wizeman know, Jackle suspected he was keeping quiet about something.

He sensed something in Jackle as well. Could that possibly be anger? Jackle remained to hold a calm expression but something was definitely off. No one had ever seen him angered at anything.

"Master Wizeman, if there is a chance he is still alive, may I have a search party to try and find him?" Jackle asked. He wanted to track down Reala? Even though they were brothers, the two didn't seem to get along.

Well... Reala did more than his younger sibling. It was scary how upset he became when it had to do with something "Jackle related." They were still brothers despite everything else. Wizeman should have suspected he would want to seek out the red jester.

"Very well. Your search party will be ready in a hour. Reala's last known location is Lost Park so that is where you should start." Wizeman didn't care what Jackle did as long it didn't interfere with his plans. Even if he did find Reala, he would most likely be dead.

The god knew what caused the rockslide and he wouldn't tell anyone the truth. Jackle thanked his master and flew out of the throne room.

_'I'll die before you take anyone else I care about away. First you made NiGHTS leave and now you have left Reala to rot. What kind of master are you?'_

Chapter end.


	6. Innocent Wandering

Edited on 09/17/12.

NiGHTS © Sega and Sonic Team

"Luna" © Katidid92

6 Innocent Wandering

Jackle frowned at his so-called, "search party" that Wizeman had promised him. The group consisted of a Seapo and Shleep the two were useless.

Didn't Wizeman want to search for Reala? Did he care whether he was alive or not?

This angered him greatly.

His brother could be dead and their master did not care. How could his own master abandon someone close to him?

He still a bit annoyed (well make that very annoyed) set out with the search party for Reala's last known location.

'_You had better not have died, Reala. If you did die on me I will kill you…' _Somehow that didn't sound possible but this maren was known to defy everything logical he came across.

He set out from Nightmare Castle moving at a quick pace. The two third levels of course fell behind but that didn't matter to him.

He had to find his brother no matter what. Reala was alive and he could feel it without a doubt. He knew he would find him more than anything.

Their master was not important right now. Jackle didn't care about him at the moment either. His sibling was the only thing on his mind.

In the distance, he could see Stick Canyon and just beyond it was Lost Park.

The first of the two deserts had a very important meaning for his older brother. That place was where NiGHTS had defeated him in battle for the first time.

Just before the fight, the younger maren recalled a tense look on the others face. He didn't say it allowed but he had asked himself, "Do you not want to fight her? Even though she has turned against us, you still care about her, right?"

That memory made him remember why Reala had gone to Lost Park. He was sent to capture the purple jester once and for all when he vanished.

Could that possibly mean she was also stuck out in the hot sandy area? Could she be dead, injured, or possibly... could she be with his brother right now?

Whatever had occurred before now it must have involved both of them.

She was a rebel Jackle still considered her a friend though he didn't admit it. Fighting her were mere orders from his master that he had no choice but to obey, or did he?

…

"Let's stop for a rest. Carrying her on my shoulders is exhaustin" Reala said once they had traveled quite a long way. The tunnel they were going through continued to rise upward. There must have been a way out of the cavern if they continued to travel like this.

Through it all, nothing had awoken the small maren who remained unconscious. She certainly appeared to have regained strength but she still was somewhat weak. It wasn't likely she would open her eyes soon. But when she did regain consciousness, something big was certain to happen.

NiGHTS and Reala wanted answers and if she tried to escape, they wouldn't let her go until she spoke up. They had to uncover her secrets or they thought they'd go mad. She would talk whether she liked it or not.

"Alright I guess I'm pretty tired myself." Reala gently set down their new companion and sat down next to NiGHTS.

"Who do you think she could be Reala?" That question had been said many times by both of them. The little girl's identity was an entirely unknown fact.

When they'd spoken to her in their dreams, she'd always have a cheerful face. Even so, her eyes were filled with negativity suggesting she was hiding worry or pain that her grin couldn't hide. Whatever that visage meant, something was troubling her and it had to do with why she was trying to help the older Nightmaren. Her reasons must have been important for her to do such a thing.

"I don't have a clue..." Reala responded. Neither of them had the slightest idea about who she was.

There was one thing they both knew though. Wizeman had never created a Nightmaren child and none of the adult Maren were allowed to have children.

Seeing as she was from the future, her parents could possibly be allowed to have a child in that time era or she was born by accident. No matter what way she was born, her problem must also have been linked to it. A dark secret was behind why she had come here.

"We can't keep talking about her like this. We need something to call her," NiGHTS stated. A name would certainly make it easier to discuss her. Even if it wasn't her real name, things wouldn't be as confusing.

They could ask for her real name when she woke up, but at the moment, she was still out cold. Perhaps she wouldn't tell them who she was and they'd need a way to talk about or to her that could keep it from becoming a difficult conversation. It was a good idea but Reala's response to it was a question.

"If you name her, you'll get attached to her. Do you really want to get that close to someone you don't know?" he asked. Making ties with someone like that led to unexpected things of all sorts. As I explained in an earlier chapter about "hitsuzen," this could also lead to a fated event.

The decision of giving her a name could head to an event that could be good or bad. Taking the chance of becoming so close to someone could make their problems your own. If you didn't have the ability to face such a thing, you would be trapped because of the destiny you had chosen. Hitsuzen was unchangeable once you made a choice.

"I did want to be your friend when I was first created. Plus. we can't just call her nothing because at this rate she isn't going to wake up and give us her name." NiGHTS made the choice to intertwine her destiny with the small girl. Reala should have expected her to choose that of all things.

She made connections to everyone she met no matter what the cost was. She brought herself into others' lives and shared their pain.

How could she manage to handle everything she accepted like this? It had to be hard and almost uncontrollable to receive fated problems from so many others.

"I guess you right about that. What do you suggest?" Reala wondered what sort of name she'd come up with. It had to be better than that name he'd thought of for her when she disguised herself. "Lunamystica" was a terrible name that they'd both regretted. He couldn't think of a name that was decent so he hoped NiGHTS had a better one.

She had so many deep thoughts as well as an unbelievable insight. With her mind she could easily come up with something to call the young maren.

"Her clothes are yellow like the moon. Why don't we call her Luna?" That was a simple name but a good one. She had come up with an easy name but it was still befitting. The moon had a calm feel to it. "Luna" appeared just as relaxed as the real one in the night sky.

Even though she frustrated NiGHTS and Reala by not answering their questions, she had an aura that made you feel more at ease. The name she'd been given naturally suited her. The question was, did her real name match her even more?

"Fine I guess," Reala agreed. Just then a thought struck him. "Does something about naming her feel familiar to you?" he asked.Déjà vu came to his mind when he thought of that. He felt like he and NiGHTS had done something like this before even though they hadn't. The memory couldn't be from the past because he knew he would remember. It couldn't be in the future could it? He was well aware he wasn't psychic but how did he know this? He didn't know how or why but was it true?

"Strangely... it kind of does… and not just naming her. Something about her in general feels familiar." She knew exactly what he meant. It couldn't be a coincidence if they both felt that way. Something strange was going on and they both knew it.

NiGHTS glanced at where Reala had set her down but received quite a shock. "Reala she is gone!"

He looked over to find the kid had disappeared too.

"She must have woken up. There is no way she could be strong enough to use her powers yet so she has to be around here somewhere." They got up and headed back into the tunnel they had come through. "We have to find her if we want her to answer our questions." The red jester nodded.

...

The Nightmaren child walked through the cave in a daze. She wasn't strong enough to fly yet and was close to collapsing. Walking itself was a challenge even after NiGHTS had given her all that energy.

She knew from experience her body would create more soon so, she wasn't worried about that. There was something that concerned her besides that. She had to get as far away from Reala and NiGHTS as she could right then.

"They can't see me because it will only create trouble. I've got to escape, but I don't know the way out of here..." she said in a tired voice. Her weakness began to grow to the point she had to hold herself up as she limped with the cave wall.

She stopped to rest because she was unable to continue. "I've been through so much and this is what it has led to so far." Her thoughts were fuzzy and she thought she might lose consciousness.

At that moment, the ones she was trying to avoid flew down the hallway. Before passing out, she felt someone catch her before her head hit the rock floor.

Chapter end.


	7. Awakening

Edited on 09/20/12: There may be future edits as well.

NiGHTS © Sega

Moonlight © Katidid92

7 Awakening

"It seems she wasn't strong enough to stay awake for very long yet," NiGHTS said. They had tried going back to the upward tunnel but were lost once again. Chasing Luna through the cave caused them to lose sight of where they thought the way out would be.

They were currently in a large space in between the tunnels.

The purple jester had set the yellow jester's head on her lap in sympathy for her weakness and guilt about not being able to help her recover faster.

She looked like she was in a comfortable slumber which again seemed very recognizable. She was a child and probably needed the additional rest anyway. "She must be exhausted. I think I'd blame myself for trying to interrogate someone who is this frail." Reala nodded.

"Even so, we still need to question her once she wakes up." He looked away at a dark corridor in the cave.

'_I still don't know where my loyalties lay. If I choose Master Wizeman, I'll have to fight NiGHTS. If I choose her instead, she could be threatened by my master.' _No matter what, that decision still couldn't be made. Reala didn't know what to do and was furious with himself because of it.

He knew all too well that the female Nightmaren with him right now was aware of the conflict he currently faced. The feeling they both felt for each other was taking a toll on his choice now more than ever. Even so, they still didn't understand what kind of emotion it was.

"Where... am I...?" The topic vanished as they both realized Luna was stirring. Before NiGHTS could stop her in case she over exerted herself, she sat up and looked around.

_'Looks like my escape plan didn't work. I think I'm stuck now...'_ She glanced at the ground. "So it seems you tended to me. Thank you very much..." The two older maren were amazed at how calm she was, unless she was just tired. The fact that she was grateful was a slight surprise in addition to the fact she hadn't tried to escape yet. Then again, common sense could tell anyone that fleeing when others are so close to you is very hard to do.

"You're welcome. How are you feeling?" NiGHTS asked. "What exactly happened to you that put you in that much danger of dying?" She'd start off with questions that were hopefully easy to answer. She only wished that it was something she could actually answer because most of the responses they'd gotten so far were "classified information."

The small girl continued to stare downward. She didn't say anything and it really made you wonder what she was thinking. "Can you answer or is it something else you have to keep secret?" The young maren shook her head and remained silent. "If you can tell us why you were like that, then please try to do it. Do you want to talk about it?"

Finally, she looked up. "I'm feeling a lot better now. As for your question, someone was trying to stop me from helping you. He attacked my mind, stole my energy, and threw me into a state of shock. If you hadn't given me more, I would have died." She'd been mentally assaulted!? Who could have done such a thing to the child? "Thank you so much for saving my life."

NiGHTS gave her a pitiful glance. Reala wasn't even looking at her at all. She smiled anyway. "Someone very much like you told me to always wear a grin on my face. You need to do that too." Somehow, they managed to do as she said. "I guess you have earned the right to receive more answers," she said_. 'Am I doing the right thing?'_

"All right. To start off with, can you give us your real name now?" NiGHTS asked. By "earning more answers" she hoped that meant to questions that she'd already asked. Reala said nothing but a look of agreement was on his face. They'd better get the information they wanted or Luna would be in trouble.

She decided she had no choice but to answer. They were going to find out in the end of all of it anyway.

"Very well. My name is Moonlight." That was her real name! Luna was actually a good guess considering it meant "Moon" in a form of human language. Her yellow outfit matched her title perfectly. It was very beautiful too and matched her relaxed nature.

The next question they asked was how far in the future had she come from and how old she was. "I was born fifteen years from now and am eight years-old." No wonder she looked so much like a small child. She truly was a small child after all. They asked whether she had parents and who they were but then she frowned. "I do have parents and an uncle but that is a question for another time..." was her reply.

"Now, I have got a question that you must answer even if not aloud."

"And what is that, Moonlight?" Reala asked. He had a bad feeling about this. Why were they being asked to reply to themselves about a question she asked? It didn't make much sense unless she could read their minds. Somehow they knew they must answer even if it was confusing. The strange emotion had stirred inside them again when she had asked. Could this have to do with what she was inquiring?

"What are your opinions of each other? What feelings do you feel for one another? How much do they matter to you right now?" What kind of question was that!? The thought of it made their heartbeats increase rapidly. Why did Moonlight ask this sort of question? "You are friends but is that all or are you far more than that?" She had a mysterious tone when she asked. She spoke in a very serious an adult-like manner. "What lies in your hearts?"

...

Jackle flew through lost park analyzing everything in sight. _'Where are you, Reala?'_ He had to be alive and for that, Jackle was certain.

He came upon what looked like the scene of a recent rock slide. _'Master Wizeman mentioned an accident. Could this possibly be what he meant? Did Reala disappear here of all places?'_

Jackle pulled out a playing card and threw it. "What happened here?" The card showed him a vision in which NiGHTS and Reala fought fiercely. Suddenly, boulders tumbled and a force pulled them into a cavern underground. The two began to work together and escape as well as regaining their friendship.

He finally saw the event that was occurring right now. _'Ree-Ree, you can answer that can't you?'_ Jackle had already guessed what Reala's true feelings were as well as NiGHTS's.

...

NiGHTS and Reala avoided staring at one another. The purple jester thought carefully about Reala. The feeling she'd felt about him as far back as she could remember stirred her thoughts. She'd been fond of him since her creation so very long ago. The exact feeling was nearly impossible to describe even to herself. He wasn't the same as anyone else she knew.

It couldn't be? Was the way she felt about him... was it LOVE? She was in love with Reala!

Reala had similar thoughts flowing through his mind right now. To be honest, he'd hated NiGHTS when they first met one another. She was annoying and had never left him alone. Then one day, he began looking at her in a different way. The point of view he saw her as was unique and unlike others around him. How he felt almost vanished when she rebelled but he still saw her the same way especially now. He loved her!?


	8. The Paths Begin To Intertwine

Edited on 09/21/12.

NiGHTS and all related trademarks © Sega

Moonlight © Katidid92

The song Moonlight sings is Legend of the Mermaid by Iwao Junko. I don't know if she is the one who has the rights to the song because it is originally from the series Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch though. It might belong to one of the series directors, composers, or someone else.

8 The Trails Begin to Intertwine

It couldn't be true! NiGHTS and Reala were in love with each other.

They hadn't spoken of their feelings out loud so neither of them knew how the other felt.

Why hadn't they realized this was that feeling that had been burning in their hearts all along?

If only they had the courage to tell one another of their true thoughts of one another. There was no way they could admit they were in love. Who knew what could have happened if they confessed their love for each other?

If Wizeman discovered it, he would destroy both of them in mere seconds. If they weren't killed, Reala would have to rebel because the god would be after him and NiGHTS. They would have to find somewhere to escape and hope he never discovered their location.

The only way to keep safe was to never admit their romance. The two Nightmaren had to try and avoid falling further into love and deal with the fact they could never be together no matter how much it made their hearts ache.

Why did they have to bottle up their feelings like that? Being unable to speak of it would bring even more pain and sorrow into their souls.

"You realize what you feel now don't you?" Moonlight said. It was more of a statement than a question but a question all the same.

The two older ones didn't respond because they were too wrapped up in their own minds.

Why had she made them realize the truth? Why did she want them to suffer. Wait, was that what Moonlight wanted? Why did she know about all this in the first place?

She had a look of regret on her face. It was as if she hadn't meant to hurt them like this. Why had she done such a thing to their spirits if she didn't want to?

Her reasons existed even though they couldn't be seen in any way. She needed them to know their hearts true thoughts for whatever she'd been guiding them for these past few days and three years ago.

"It's alright. This isn't a bad thing at all. If you can just say it to one another, you'll feel better and something good will happen. You don't have to talk about this now, but please do so before you leave this cave. I promise you that everything will become clear after this. You'll know what to do and how to live so trust me."

'If y_ou don't do as I have requested, I'll disappear and the fabric of time will have so many things cut from it that are very important.'_ She didn't speak those words to them but it was very important. Everything could end in disaster if that thought were true.

...

Jackle closed the vision from his card of the events that had just happened. He was worried about what he had just seen. Reala loved NiGHTS and she loved him back equally.

The caped Maren knew that Reala's loyalty to Wizeman was right on the line at that moment. He wanted his brother to choose happiness and love. Unfortunately, that meant he would have to betray Wizeman.

The younger Nightmaren didn't want to fight the red jester if he became an enemy.

He thought for what seemed like forever about the topic. His mind raced for the decision at hand to be answered. It seemed like hours went by before he stopped.

He knew what to do even no matter how risky it was a challenge. If Reala turned on Wizeman because he was in love with NiGHTS, Jackle would join them in rebellion.

This was the biggest selection of options he'd ever made.

Wizeman didn't matter to him anymore in terms of loyalty. What good things had ever come of having the robed figure as a master?

NiGHTS had left because she didn't like his plans long before anyone else.

Her former friends had been ordered to fight her by his command.

In his most recent plan to capture her, Reala was hurt even though he didn't deserve it at all. Wizeman left him for dead and when Jackle requested to try and find him, he was ignored because their master didn't care. He didn't need a master like that and neither did his brother.

Suddenly, a rumbling stirred the silence around him. Another rock slide had just begun!

Jackle used a card to quickly get out of its path before it was too late.

He looked at the ground to find it was shaking violently. NiGHTS, Reala, and Moonlight were still underground. They were beneath the desert in the middle of an earthquake! If they didn't find a way out of there fast, they'd be killed.

Then he realized why the natural disaster was happening! Wizeman was doing it for that he was certain! He was trying to kill NiGHTS by his powers over nature because he was fed up with trying to capture her!

He probably was set on murdering Reala too because he may have figured out he might turn against him!

Jackle quickly got an idea and took out another card_. 'This card holds the power of teleportation and can find a path to anything in seconds!_' He threw it and it vanished into thin air.

...

"We have to get out of here NOW or we'll die!" NiGHTS exclaimed as the cavern began to cave in.

"Moonlight, do you know the way out of this cave!?" She hoped to heck the small girl did seeing as she knew so much about everything else.

The three of them were flying at random to avoid the rock and stalactites crashing all around them. The earthquake shaking the walls, ceiling, and floor was making it even harder to evade their deaths.

They understood that something was very wrong with this picture.

Nightopia was created from the good in people's hearts. It was meant to be a paradise and not a place of destruction such as this.

Wizeman! Wizeman was doing this in order to end them once and for all. They had to escape this and fast!

"I don't know a way out! Plus, I don't have enough energy yet to use my powers to teleport us out of here. But I do know you won't die here and neither will I!" How could she have known that!? She had far more information about the past then they thought!

"If you were to lose your lives now, I would vanish into thin air and never come back! I can't go into all the details but please believe my words!" It was hard to believe but her eyes shone with honesty.

Before she could say anything else, a playing card appeared in front of them. Its magic power resembled someone they all recognized.

"Jackle!" Reala said. "This is one of his magic playing cards!" NiGHTS knew he was right. The question was why would he be in a place like this? The card began to fly down a tunnel very quickly.

"Maybe we should follow it!" All three agreed and flew after the card. It headed swiftly to a tunnel on the right. They chased after it as it led them back to the tunnel that headed upwards. Before they had to find Moonlight, they were heading in the right direction after all.

If they were lucky, the way out of htere must be closer by than they thought.

"Why is Jackle helping us find our way out!?" NiGHTS questioned. It didn't make sense to her. Either he was trying to get Reala out because he possibly believed he was still loyal to Wizeman or he had turned on Wizeman and was interfering with his plans. Whatever his reasons were for assisting them, it would hopefully save their lives.

The purple jester wasn't sure if they would survive this but Moonlight seemed to believe it was the only outcome. She'd better have been right or everything was over.

The card headed up through a large hole above into an extremely large space. How could a cave this big have existed when no one noticed? There were still boulders falling but they weren't close enough to crush the three.

The rock floor below caved in revealing the inside of all the tunnels below. "We got out of that part of the cavern just in time!" It was true. They would have been hit by the rock floor if they were down there any longer.

Nevertheless, they weren't out of the cave yet.

"I can see the sky in that hole up there! There is a way out," Reala pointed. The exit was so high up it was unbelievable. They flew towards it as fast as they could.

Just then, they heard the sound of rushing water. They glanced down but didn't stop flying. A spring deep underground was rising much faster than they could fly!

"There must have been water trapped under here and it's gotten loose! We'll drown if we don't make it." He and NiGHTS began to fly faster but Moonlight stopped. "What are you doing?"

_'On a very distant coast the rainbow colored wind blows endlessly._ She was singing!? Why would she be doing that at a time like this? Had she gone mad_? 'The melody I cannot remember truly is very nostalgic song.' _

Just as the older Maren were about to yell for her to stop, they noticed the water had begun to hold still. _'…It flows and it flows, like a sunset sea. That is why I will continue to try to sing. The melody of the seven oceans travels on and on. It heads for the remote tomorrow where you wait for me. The seven colors of the rainbow hear my voice far far far away. I will reach you there and won't not forget this song again.'_

At that last verse the water was frozen solid! Could her song have done this!?

"What was that about!?" NiGHTS demanded now that Moonlight continued to fly to the top. "Did you do that using that song!? She'd never seen anything like that happen before. If that was one of the yellow jester's powers it was an amazing one. She could do so many amazing things that surprised the viewer every time.

Just how could such a young child possess so many abilities and powers that were each beyond strong?

The two others were First Level Nightmaren which was supposed to be the strongest of them all and there powers were all the same. On the other hand, though she was equally powerful, her powers worked in a different way. It was almost like she was on a different type of level of the same strength as the regular first levels.

"I can cast spells by singing. That was a spell to freeze water (which by the way took a lot out of me). We'd better still hurry though because it won't stay that way for long," the child explained. This added to the fact of the mysteries surrounding Moonlight. There was some secret about her and everything around her.

It wasn't likely that she would evaluate about herself anytime soon.

It was an easy guess that she had a lot more tasks planned for them. As NiGHTS and Reala completed these requests, she would probably tell them more about whom she was and why she was here.

They exited the caves and found themselves in a gorge with boulders continuing to tumble around them.

That was when they noticed they could no longer see Jackle's card. When they had paused for Moonlight to freeze the spring, it had gone ahead without them.

Chapter end.


	9. A Future Attack

Edited 09/22/12

NiGHTS © Sega and Sonic Team

Moonlight © Katidid92

9 A Future Attack

"Damn it... Where did that card go?" NiGHTS looked around as they dodged the continuing rock slide.

Moonlight had an ashamed look on her face because she was the one who had stopped while the card went ahead. "Moonlight, stop looking depressed because it's not your fault. If you hadn't paused to freeze that water, we could have drowned."

The yellow maren beamed up slightly when the other forgave her.

"Now help us find that card. You must have some idea if you have all those powers, don't you?" She shook her head meaning she had no idea how to find it.

"I guess we'll just have to guess where it went and fly that way." Reala nodded and so did the young Maren. Then she came up with something.

"If it leads to Unc... I mean Jackle, wouldn't he be somewhere that these boulders weren't in the path of?" What Moonlight said made a lot of sense.

Though not that it seemed important at the time, she appeared to know Jackle too. It seemed very strange that she had almost said something else instead of his name.

Whatever she had stammered about, must have to do with her secrets. There was no way they could get more information out of her and doing it where they were now wasn't a good idea.

Suddenly, she looked up as if someone had spoken to her.

"And that would most likely be outside this gorge, so why are we still waiting to get crushed by boulders... By the way, you probably know this already but I was the one who dragged you out of that last mess. Doing it again is too much for me right now so let's just get out of here," she said in an almost demanding way.

"My energy builds up VERY fast but let's just hurry, OKAY!" It looked to be like she was having an attitude problem. However, if you took a closer look, she appeared afraid of something. It was as if she'd just been told a story that scared her. "Come on already!"

_'You must quickly get out of there before it is too late! He's coming!_

A voice resonated. Reala and NiGHTS stopped. Was there actually a voice telling Moonlight they needed to get away and did they just here it too?

Moonlight looked at them with wide eyes of fear echoing their need to escape.

_'Quickly! Quickly!' _

They realized they could all here the warning loudly and not just on their own.

_'Unless fate has destined for you to cross paths... Never mind! In any case, try to avoid the terrible thing that is about to happen!'_

Moonlight used her face to say that they needed to listen and get out RIGHT THEN AND THERE.

Even though they wanted an explanation first, they listened and began to fly out of the gorge.

"What are you so afraid of?" Reala asked. The Nightmaren Child didn't respond and continued flying as if her life depended on it. "Who did we just hear?" She remained silent.

He realized this wasn't the time to ask questions because for one thing, it seemed they needed to escape whatever was coming and for another thing, Moonlight was far too terrified to notice him.

That face of hers that resembled NiGHTS looked like it was beyond being scared enough to scream and those eyes that had a color very close to his were overflowing with fright.

It gave him a sickening feeling that meant something big was about to happen. Whatever it was may have prevented him from ever deciding to leave Wizeman to be with NiGHTS or remain loyal to his master.

Why hadn't Reala chose what to do already because it may have been too late for him and her!? He was furious with himself right then.

Before they could exit the gorge, something shocking happened. The boulders falling around them froze in place and hung in the air. "What is going on!?" NiGHTS exclaimed.

Moonlight made a look that meant "We were far too late..."

The purple jester couldn't manage to make her keep flying. She grabbed her hand and tried to pull her along but she didn't move an inch. "We might still get away from whatever you're so afraid of come on!"

She looked at her face and noted the young Maren was too scared to move. She was trembling and appeared to have zoned out. "Snap out of it! Can you hear me!?" No answer came.

"The boulders are paused in time..." she finally spoke but was still very quiet and she sounded apprehensive. "That means something is about to arrive here from another time period just like I did."

Moonlight had said she came from the future, but did that mean that someone else was coming from there as well?

Shaking, she pulled down her yellow legging revealing an unusual looking jewel was embedded in her leg that glowed with an eerie green light... "My tracker must have let him find us..." NiGHTS glanced hard at that "tracker" in her leg. "I didn't think he could use it to track me through time..."

"What IS that..?" she asked in a mix of shock and monotone. "What do you mean it lead someone to find us? Who are you talking about in the first place?"

Before Moonlight could even respond, NiGHTS felt sinister presence. She grit her teeth, "Wizeman..." Her former master must be who Moonlight was talking about.

She analyzed his aura more closely and realized something seemed a little different..._'Stronger... far stronger...'_

In all the time since she'd been created, Wizeman had never grown more powerful than he was already. If her former master was even more dangerous than before, he'd have to have found a way to do it that couldn't have been easy to figure out.

Then it crossed her mind that this Wizeman was coming from a different time era which meant it might be possible that the Wizeman of this time period might not be this strong yet.

"In my time era, Nightopia is not long away from being ripped apart forever. I have lived in hiding since I was born but was eventually trapped in Nightmare Castle... When I was imprisoned there, a tracker was placed in my leg so that if I were to ever escape, Wizeman could track me anywhere. In that time, he has all the power and no rebel Nightmaren can stop him because he found an unknown power source that increased his strength dramatically. I finally got away but it seems Wizeman has finally found me. I came here to rejoin the two of you and warn you of this threat..."

So that was why all this was happening!

Why warn them if it was the future though? Wouldn't that have meant it was supposed to happen? Plus, what could they do to stop it if that is why she came caution them of this?

NiGHTS thought carefully about what she'd just heard.

She'd given up on stopping Wizeman from the night Will and Helen left Nightopia. She was certain there was nothing she could do to stop him. Next to that, she finally believed Reala would return to Wizeman and she'd be alone again.

The only thing she was worthy of was committing suicide. Even after all that had happened. her life just wasn't worth it anymore. She would always be alone and she would always be incapable of stopping Wizeman.

_'I'm sorry, Moonlight. How can I help you if I can_'t _even help myself...'_ She couldn't do anything and she was certain of that fact.

"Shouldn't we still try to get out of here!?" Reala yelled now that both NiGHTS and Moonlight were in capable of moving from where they floated.

He spoke too late because out of nowhere a beam of black energy struck the purple jester knocking her unconscious! "NiGHTS!"

He grabbed her arm to try to wake her up but upon touching her, he slipped into sleep as well.

A dark figure appeared over the only one still awake. Moonlight broke into tears and spread her arms in an attempt to protect them from any more harm.


	10. Nightmares Within Nightmares

Edited on 09/22/12

NiGHTS © Sega

Moonlight © Katidid92

10 Nightmares within Nightmares

Moonlight looked at Wizeman as he approached her and the knocked out NiGHTS and Reala. "Wizeman, please leave us alone!" she cried. "You've already taken over everything in the future. There is no point in hunting me down because there is no way to stop you!" she continued to plead. "I have no value so I beg of you not to hurt them for being with me!"

Her orange vest and silky yellow sleeves became stained with tears as she sobbed. She knew all to well Wizeman could sense her fear. She also knew that he wouldn't heed her words. The very reason she'd fled was because no matter what she tried, the god would destroy Nightopia and soon enough the entire universe.

"You still believe you have no value to me? You still claim you had no reason in particular to cross time as well get these fools mixed in with your troubles? It is obvious you aren't being honest, Moonlight," Wizeman boomed. He could instantly see through anything she said or did.

"You have special powers that are very useful to my plans. You are a unique Nightmaren and thus, I require you to serve me."

No matter how much she refused to admit it, she wasn't a normal First Level Nightmaren. She refused to reveal to anyone she was in a different category known as, "The S Level." She was the only one in history.

There was only one way that such a Maren could come into existence. Wizeman couldn't create a S Level Nightmaren because their unique properties.

For that reason, he wanted Moonlight. She could be an amazing asset to what he wanted, but_ she_ didn't want any part of it.

Moonlight's tears were nearly blinding her at this moment.

"Tears don't suite you, Moonlight. If you serve me, you won't need to cry again. That pretty little face of yours doesn't need to be dirtied... especially those turquoise eyes of yours. They look so much like your father's used to."

If NiGHTS and Reala had been awake and heard what Wizeman had just said, perhaps Moonlight's identity would become clearer.

"A fitting punishment destroyed that coloring and its one I'm sure you'd rather not face."

She stopped crying and glared at the robed figure. "That which you claim was a deserved punishment, wasn't one in the slightest! My family was torn to bits and badly hurt because of you, especially my father!"

Angered, Wizeman grabbed her in one of his eyed hands. He sent lightning surging through her body but it didn't stop her determined facial expression.

"Are you trying to punish me like you did to my father!? Let me tell you right now, it's not possible! You may kill me, but where will your scheme go if I'm dead!?" She tried to squirm free but it did no good. Even though she was frightened, she did have some courage to stand up to him.

"So, you do have your mother's attitude after all!" Wizeman threw her into a rock wall in which she thought every bone in her little body would smash to pieces. Nightmaren bodies were more durable than a humans, but that still had to have been painful.

Injured bu the impact, she pulled herself out of the crater she'd made.

Her powers hadn't fully increased again yet and she had no fight left in her system.

Things looked grim at that moment.

Should she give in or not? No, she'd promised she would seal Wizeman's fate and she would do whatever it took to keep that promise.

But what could she do?

...

Jackle looked from the distance at clouds far blacker than the ones in Nightmare. It was some sort of omen that created that overcast in the sky.

"Please tell me you're on your way here..." He spotted something flying up to him. Reaching out for it with his hand, he realized it was his card.

If NiGHTS, Reala, and that little girl weren't right behind it, that meant they must be in trouble!

His card was ripped to shreds but it had some power left. "Take me to them NOW!" He threw it again and it headed in the direction of those clouds.

Heading into the gorge, he noticed that boulders were floating in mid air. That didn't concern him at the moment because of his brother and friends.

He continued until he came upon a startling sight. Reala and NiGHTS were unconscious and that young Maren was facing Wizeman on her own.

Something still wasn't right with this picture. Wizeman was even larger and ten times more menacing.

The child looked too injured to fight any longer so it was up to him now. He pulled another card from his deck and a river of flames aimed themselves at the god. As they were about to strike, they simply vanished into thin air!

"Get out of here, Uncle Jackle!" the kid screamed now that both she and Wizeman had spotted him. Uncle? Why had she called him that!? He could ask her later but there was too big a problem to do so at the time.

He tried a card that could control lightning but it also did no good.

"Hurry and go!" she yelled again. "It's too dangerous and you don't stand a chance!"

Jackle didn't listen. He flew in-between the girl and Wizeman ready to fight to the death if he had to.

"You'll be in big trouble in the future. You are needed there so if you fight here, there is no way you'll survive." What was she talking about? None of what she said made much sense to him.

"Moonlight, you are no longer an essential to destroy Nightopia so I will go. Be aware that your existence has been canceled with those fool's fate." She glanced at her feet. Wait a second they were gone!

"Farewell, we will not meet again." Wizeman faded away. It was likely he had returned to his own time era.

Moonlight screamed in shock and Jackle was caught highly off guard.

"What is happening to you!?" Jackle exclaimed as her lower legs slowly began to fade away. The young Maren cried out in terror. Her panic was beyond anything he'd ever seen.

He grabbed her shoulders and shook her. "Calm down so we can find a way to stop whatever is happening to you!" he yelled. She snapped back to her senses and nodded.

"It can't be stopped unless these two are able to wake up." she whispered. "If they die, I won't exist. It seems they are being eaten away at in their dreams. Unless they can awaken, I'll be nothing."

Jackle looked at Reala and NiGHTS. Their faces were completely off. They were a color you'd expect to see on someone near death.

Somehow, he knew there was nothing they could do and it was up to them to fight off their mental battles in their subconscious.

...

Reala stared blankly at a gray sky. What had he been doing before now? He couldn't remember anything that occurred previously.

Suddenly, like a jolt of lightning his memory returned. His creation, meeting everyone he did, having been lost in the caves, and himself and NiGHTS going out cold.

On his mind, only one thing mattered.

"NiGHTS, where are you!?" She had been struck down first and he had to find her!

No matter where he flew, the scenery didn't change. He had to find a way out of yhere to rescue her. He knew he had fallen in love with the purple jester and thus, couldn't just abandon her.

Just then, he sensed someone behind him and quickly turned around. If he had to fight there, he wouldn't care.

When he saw who had appeared, he stared in disbelief. It was a mirror with his reflection in it. Something wasn't right with this picture. The Mirror Reala didn't mimic his movements like a reflection should. It smirked in an evil looking way. "What are you!?" He demanded of the other.

"I am you," was the response. Before he could protest, the reflection somehow emerged from the mirror, grabbed him by his ruff, and held him against a door that appeared out of nowhere.

"Does something about this seem familiar to you?" it asked. It_ did_ seem familiar. How did he recognize this action? The reflection tightened his grip on Reala's ruff choking him. That is when everything came back to him.

_'Ah, NiGHTS long time no see. Out for a walk with your little Visitor friend are we?'_

_'Re-Reala...'_

Six months ago he had done the exact same thing to NiGHTS that this fake version of him was doing now.

"Why would you look for someone you enjoyed choking like this so much?" the shadow asked. He didn't like hurting the purple jester at all! "Why would you give a care about someone other than Master Wizeman? Who means more to you out of the two?"

Reala pulled himself free and gasped for air.

He didn't know! He really didn't know who he cared for more! "Still having trouble placing which is better between loyalty and love...?" The real one finally regained his voice.

"H-how... how do you know... all this?" he questioned. He was still not ready to speak a lot after being strangled. His demand came out roughly and quietly. "I've told no one anything about this choice. Why are you questioning me about who matters more...?"

He stopped speaking to give his voice time to heal.

"The answer to all your questions I've already said. 'I am you.' Didn't you hear me the first time?" It started making sense in a unusual way. "I know all your troubles, I know all your memories, I know all your feelings, and I know all your thoughts, because we are one and the same."

He paused for a second. "But I know something you don't know... where you truly belong..."

...

NiGHTS stared at an endless ocean with no land in sight. The weather was stormy and she knew this wasn't a safe place to be.

She realized this was a hurricane she was flying in the middle of.

She needed to find The Eye of the Storm so she would be safe but where was it?

Just then, something urged her to look at the water below. She saw herself staring back up in the wild waves.

This other NiGHTS emerged from the water and stared with an emotionless expression. "This is the sea of loneliness that dwells deep within your own heart."

"What are you talking about?" she asked herself. "Are you saying this is how I see myself or something like that?" Her other self nodded. "You're saying that endless loneliness is what makes me up?" She nodded again. "But why... I don't feel lonely at all?" The reflection spoke once more.

"You were in The Ideya Palace for a hundred years all alone. The very two who freed you left you behind as did the next two. You have no one you can rely on to call a friend or anything else. You are, have always been, and always will be alone. The loneliness you feel created this sea of torrent and sadness you feel inside your heart."

"I'm lonely?" Her face became saddened. "It's true. I'm alone... All I have to rely on is me. That is why I've chosen my death! To end my life! I only am around myself..."

She embraced her mirror image tightly. "All I have is you..." She felt hot tears seep down her face. She stayed in that position holding onto herself.

Even though she did hold on, in another way she was still as lost as before.

_'I am me. You are you. I am you. You are me. We are one and the same. _They echoed in the same mind. '_We can only depend on each other. We'll sink back into darkness together. No one else cares. We are alone and we will die alone... as one sole entity. Don't be afraid. Do not flee. What else is there to live for?'_

NiGHTS broke away from herself and shook her head as if it to say no. "What is wrong with me!? I have something! I know there is a thing I have besides myself!"

She looked into her other's gaze. Something was wrong. It wasn't really her there was it?

It seemed to say: "If you do have something besides me, what is it?" She didn't know the answer. She felt there was something that belonged to her and only her though.

"What is it?" Those eyes of hers said again. "What do you have besides yourself?"

NiGHTS shook her head trying to picture what she felt. A face flashed in her mind but they vanished in mere seconds.

"It looks like you are starting to remember, but you don't need those monsters. Isn't he your enemy? Doesn't he attack you? Doesn't he say cruel things to you? Doesn't he serve the so called God of Nightmares?" It was all true!

"He doesn't want me?" she asked. The other nodded.

"It can't be!" The other took her hand. "What should I do?"

"Drown in the sea of loneliness. End it all... You'll never feel lonely. You'll never cry. You'll have no care in the world."

Chapter End


	11. Find Your True Path

Edit 09/22/12 I've edited this chapter

NiGHTS (C) Sega and Sonic Team  
Moonlight (C) Katidid92

11 Find Your True Path

Moonlight noticed she had nearly stopped disappearing. "Could it be that they are fighting off their problems," she said in a worried voice. "...or could it be that this is a temporary stop and I'll still fade from existence?"

She knew that the chances of NiGHTS and Reala surviving were really low and the proof was she was vanishing from time at all.

If they both died, no if one of them died her place in the timeline would be canceled.

She had appeared to them as a guide, if she were erased, the fabric of time could have holes in it and be destroyed forever.

Wizeman must have planned this by attacking NiGHTS in such a way. She knew he'd gone mad. It was practically kamikaze because he would be destroyed too and he knew it.

She hoped to heck that she and the others would be spared but what good could it do?

Jackle stared at her waist, everything below it was gone.

_'What is this about?'_ he thought to himself. _'Who is this child? No, It can't be that she is...'_ He didn't think about the entire sentence, let alone speak it. _'That explains everything... NiGHTS and Reala don't know... It is for her to say to them alone...' _

How could something like that be so hard to figure out?

Then again. some of the most obvious things are the most impossible to identify. If you were looking for something such as a television remote and couldn't find it, it was probably in plain sight.

...

NiGHTS continued to try to find what she had besides herself.

The hurricane was getting worse the more terrible she felt. It was as if her loneliness was reflecting into this world like she was a Visitor.

Her heart ached with unbelievable pain and she felt hopeless.

Could there really be nothing that she had? Why did she feel she possessed something worth living for if she didn't know what it was?

"My life is as meaningless as a sky with no stars," she finally said in despair.

Wait just a second! Stars! ...Something about that sounded familiar... far too familiar...

"What do you have besides yourself? Nothing," the other NiGHTS answered her question. NiGHTS didn't hear her and began to think about stars as if her life depended on it, in fact her life did depend on it.

She'd seen stars all the time in Nightopia but that wasn't what she was trying to remember. The Dream Gate had stars, it was technically not part of Nightopia but that wasn't it either.

There was only one other place in The Night Dimension that she knew had stars, Nightmare_._ It was unusual for a place built on darkness itself to have such a thing but it was there nonetheless. The only place you could see the stars was the highest tower in Nightmare Castle. It rose above the clouds and red hazed sky with black clouds. Only Wizeman, she, and one other knew of its existence.

Just who was this other figure she couldn't remember? It had to be someone very important and for that she was certain.

He wore red and black, had flat slanting eyes, with a scar across each. What was his name? He may have seemed bad on the outside but there was good in him that no one else noticed.

But what was his name? Who was he!?

Then, NiGHTS finally remembered his identity. "Reala!"

The second she yelled his name, the other NiGHTS grabbed by the collar.

That was when she realized this wasn't herself but some evil being.

The monster ripped her sleeve off, dug her nails into her shoulder, and blood spilled down her sleeve. Crying out in pain made this beast sink her nails in deeper.

"STOP!" she exclaimed. Using her other arm, she punched the thing in the face.

It released her shoulder, but that was when she felt pain on her face as well. A mark was on her face in the exact same spot as where the creature had taken the blow.

As if by instinct, she looked at its shoulder to see its sleeve was ripped off and blood had dripped from the same spot.

_'When I get hurt, she gets hurt... When she gets, hurt I get hurt... It's really me!' _NiGHTS was really fighting herself!?

"Of course I'm really you. Everything you do affects us. I'm your shadow."

Her reflection stopped speaking for a moment. "Speaking of shadows such as myself, did you know I know every decision you've ever made?" As angry and worried as she was about this "shadow," somehow she knew it was true.

"I thought you would know what terrible decision made me decide to fight you?" NiGHTS shook her head. "The decision to live is why you will die here. Even if you were to live on, Wizeman's defeat will destroy you and the one you love in the end. Let him go back to Wizeman, save himself, and face your fate."

...

Reala stared intensely at his reflection as he listened to its words. "You really know where I belong?" he asked.

How could his mirrored self know this and not his actual self? He didn't know if he should trust him or not. He didn't even know if it truly was his other self. For all he knew, it could be some monster come to take his life by tricking him.

The mirror Reala nodded at his question. "I know very well where you are destined to be." He paused. "Since three years ago, you have been struggling endlessly trying to find what side you should be on. You don't know which will lead you to true happiness. Your options are being with the one you love with all your heart or serving your master, the very one who created you and your love," he continued. "Your best choice is the second option."

Reala didn't speak. He couldn't speak.

He was supposed to fight to destroy Nightopia!? He was supposed to be NiGHTS's enemy!? NiGHTS was supposed to be _his_ enemy!? It didn't seem like right option but he wasn't certain it was the wrong option. It couldn't be true, could it?

After thinking about it, something didn't seem right with this speech. Nightmaren had the ability to sense if an aura was good or bad (other than Wizeman in almost all cases), but Reala couldn't sense bad or good feelings from his reflection.

That was when he realized the truth. The bad energy was all around and the one telling him what to do was part of it! He couldn't live without NiGHTS and this thing was his worries and doubts taking on a form of its own!

...

Moonlight looked at what was left of her body. Just her head and her upper torso remained. She'd stopped disappearing entirely now. "I-I think they're pulling through! Everything might be saved after all!" she exclaimed.

She wasn't certain seeing as she wasn't reappearing. But remaining positive was something she'd tried to do as much as she could.

Someone very important to her had done the very same. She knew to try to be as strong as they were even if she was scared.

Jackle wasn't sure what to think at this point but somehow he knew something was going to happen. He didn't know when or where but everyone there would play a key role. He was certain others would be involved in whatever would happen too.

He assumed this because of his firm belief in hitsuzen. Fate must have chosen these roles for them to fulfill.

...

"Die here? I'm not going to die here! I have to find Reala! I want to be with Reala! I love Reala!" NiGHTS yelled at her shadow. She'd finally regained her hope.

She had to fight this destiny. There were some parts of fate no one could change but this one she had to reshape.

Her decisions would decide her fortune. They would determine how she would die or how she would live. "I'll destroy you for trying to make me kill myself!"

The monstrous reflection laughed. "Like that will work out! I'm your shadow. If you destroy your shadow, you are lost yourself. No one can live without a shadow." It smirked in a very demonic way.

"I'll kill you first!" The creature charged forward and grabbed NiGHTS's arms tightly. She was going to be paralooped!

She wouldn't let that happen after all she'd been through. It was a great risk but she would touch dash her shadow before it made a full circle.

"Don't get any ideas to fight back. You'll have no shadow if you do!" NiGHTS didn't listen and used the touch dash knocking the thing a few feet away.

"Yes, I won't have a shadow. I'll build a new one from scratch! I will build a shadow that has the will to live and the hope to accomplish my dreams!"

Indeed, NiGHTS would do just as she said. She wouldn't let her pain and sorrow hold her back ever again.

...

"You really think you can change sides and live? Your life doesn't matter to you as long as you die happy I suppose." Reala had gotten into a battle with his negative feelings. They were clashing with each other back and forth.

The other was trying to psyche him out with those words but it wasn't working. "The road you've chosen will lead to your demise!"

"Breaking my focus by trying to make me nervous isn't going to succeed," he said with a slight grin on his face. Reala was enjoying fighting off his bad emotions because doing so was making him stronger.

There was no way he would lose this fight. He was going to where he belonged. He was going to be at NiGHTS's side no matter what happened!

"If you do this, perhaps Wizeman will kill your beloved NiGHTS as well as you. Do you really want to risk her life?" That didn't weaken him either. Reala would never let that happen! He would gladly sacrifice himself for her.

"I will make sure her life is happy as long as I can! My life means nothing if she can keep her own." There might be just a bit more that he wanted. He wanted to live alongside NiGHTS and that is what he planned to do.

As he struck the final blow, a face appeared in his mind. For a split second he knew who it was but the image and name vanished.

Had he just scene a vision of the future? Someone else would play a major part in his life?

Chapter End.


	12. Moving Forward

Edited on 09/22/12

NiGHTS (C) Sega

Moonlight (C) Katidid92

12 Moving Forward

NiGHTS slowly opened her eyes. She remembered everything about her dream and what happened before it.

She felt some soft sand beneath her but she felt something else as well.

Turning her head, she noticed her hand was being held by someone. It was Reala! He appeared to be alright which made her happier than anything in the universe.

He slowly began to stir himself.

"NiGHTS, you're alright," he said quietly. She smiled at him. Had he really had her on his mind while he was asleep? It made her glad though she didn't know exactly why it would. Perhaps the fact that she loved him as much as she did was the reason behind it.

She wasn't sure if she should tell him considering the fact that she had no idea if he would return to Nightmare or not. So, before she could confess she had to ask him what he would do now.

"Reala, what do you plan on doing? Are you going back to serve Wizeman once more?" She'd be heartbroken if he said yes, but somehow she felt she could live on even if that happened.

It would surely be alright. She didn't care if he didn't love her as long as she still held her feelings for him. Just understanding them was enough.

"No, I'm not going back to Master Wizeman, or rather should I just call him Wizeman now that I've decided to become a rebel?" NiGHTS looked at him with a shocked but gladdened expression.

"Do you want to know why I'm not returning to him?" She nodded her head in response.

He smiled. "I'm staying in Nightopia because I love you, NiGHTS." She stopped breathing at that moment. He returned her feelings!

She'd gone beyond bliss. There was no word to describe how she felt at that moment.

"I love you too, Reala," she said softly. They stared eye to eye with a warm expression. They'd be together forever, that they knew for a fact. Nothing would ever break them apart ever again.

They'd done it. They'd broken free of their tragic destinies. They had no idea where their new paths would go but they would intertwine for eternity.

They sat up and looked at their surroundings.

A large body of water they didn't recognize was below them. Was this really still lost park or were they somewhere else? "Wait. Is that the gorge where I was attacked?" NiGHTS asked in confusion. Lost Park had always been a dry desert. Where could this water have come from?

"When Moonlight froze that underground source of water, the force of her powers created a chain reaction. This allowed the water to burst out from underground and fill the gorge." The two turned around to see Jackle sitting on a rock a few feet away. He held the card he'd used to guide them in his glove. "Luckily, I was here to get you guys out of there before you drowned." He laughed.

"Why did you help us, Jackle?" Reala asked his younger brother. "I should suspect you shouldn't I?" He crossed his arms.

Then, he understood. "You've also turned against Wizeman?" NiGHTS looked from Jackle, to Reala, and back.

"I'm not going to let Wizeman control me anymore than you are," the caped Maren said shrugging. "I want to actually use my sense of humor without Ol Wizey yelling 'Jackle, silence!' or 'Jackle go gather Ideya!'. Besides, I can't let my brother rebel all alone?"

Reala sighed at the last part of his younger brother's explanation. He was free of Wizeman but apparently he wouldn't be free of his obnoxious sibling's personality. Oh well. Another rebel may come in handy.

Then, something popped into Reala's mind. "Where did Moonlight go!?"

He didn't understand the reason but he didn't like the thought of her in danger just as much as if it were NiGHTS. She didn't appear to be anywhere in sight. What had happened to her after he'd fallen unconscious?

As if on cue, Moonlight magically appeared in front of him. "No need to worry. I'm safe and at your service," she said bowing. She got up and smiled very brightly, her turquoise eyes sparkling brightly.

"I'm glad your both okay." The eight year-old finally seemed to lose some of the worry that had stood out through even her childish smile.

"Moonlight, can I ask you some more questions?" NiGHTS asked. Moonlight didn't nod or shake her head. "Just who are you exactly? Why have you come to us?" She still wanted answers and hoped the yellow jester would give as many as she needed.

For some reason, there was no response whatsoever.

Jackle began to speak. "If you don't tell them, I will, Moonlight. You see Moonlight is your..."

Jackle was stopped by Moonlight tackling him to the ground. Despite her very small size, that had to have hurt. "Okay fine. I won't tell them! Just why are you so afraid of telling them!?"

NiGHTS and Reala traded beyond puzzled glances. They didn't have a clue what had just happened. They truly didn't understand that Moonlight's identity was very important to them.

"Sorry, Unc... I mean, Jackle," she said getting off the ground looking quite embarrassed.

She turned back to NiGHTS and Reala. "I have my next and final request for you."

Her face became serious all traces of her smile were gone. "I need your help. As you have changed your fates, I now ask that you change mine. You must defeat Wizeman once and for all." She stopped speaking for a moment. "You must stop him before fifteen years come to pass. On that year, fifteen years from now, disaster will wreck everything for you and everyone."

"Moonlight, why are you asking us this after all that has happened?" NiGHTS stared long and hard at her almost identical face. "You need to explain to us why you have come to the past. We need to know why you need our help so badly."

Moonlight looked away. "Come on! Give us some answers, Moonlight! Keeping secrets isn't going to help us stop Wizeman or anything!"

Moonlight looked back at them. A longing expression was worn on her face. It was as if she was looking at someone she hadn't seen in years.

"You are correct. I cannot tell you all there is to tell but I will tell you all that I can," She cast her eyes downward.

"The future I live in is a great mess. Wizeman has control over all of Nightopia. Visitors are so scarce that it has nearly faded entirely. Our last hope was for me to come to the past, and ask that you defeat him before that time comes to pass. By time I am born, he will be unstoppable."

She continued her story, a story so sad and terrifying that it would destroy the soul of anyone who heard it.

NiGHTS, Reala, and Jackle realized the pain and sorrow she'd gone through could never come to pass.

Her fate was in their very hands. They had to make sure she could be brought to smile once again. They would save her future as well as their own.


End file.
